


Delta Darya

by silenthuntress72



Series: Wildsverse [1]
Category: The Transformers (IDW Generation One)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Arranged Marriage, Blood and Gore, Body Modification, F/M, Groping, Hound being a romantic, Hound being a sweetheart, Kidnapping, Knotting, Lack of Communication, M/M, Mating Cycles/In Heat, Mirage being Mirage, Multi, Murder, Out of Character, Sticky Sexual Interfacing, Wilderness, cultures coming together
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-30
Updated: 2020-11-22
Packaged: 2021-01-13 09:23:40
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 22
Words: 100,261
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21241820
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/silenthuntress72/pseuds/silenthuntress72
Summary: This is set in an alternate universe where there are no Autobots or Decepticons.After a century long war between the civilized part of Cybertron (known to the wild Cybertronians as the Outlands) and the wild clan. The two leaders came to an unsteady agreement to end the war, their oldest creations formed a spark bond. Mirage wasn't happy about the decision and Hound being a sentimental mech tries his best to impress his future mate. And Mirage being well Mirage says some offensive stuff and that causes the wild mech to back out of the bonding. They don't see each other for a long time until a certain Polyhexian kicks Mirage in the aft into correcting his wrong.Breem: 8.3 minutesVorn: 83 yearsCycle: 2 hoursGroon: 1 hourNano-klik: 1 secondDeca-cycle: 30 daysDeci-vorn: 8.3 yearsKlik: 1.2 minutesMega-cycle: 93 hoursMeta-cycle: 13 monthsStellar cycle: 7.5 monthsAstrosecond: .5 secondsSolar cycle: 1 dayLunar cycle: 1 night





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Wild clan members/Position:  
Ultra Magnus- Father/Warrior  
Jazz- Inamorta/Watcher (sweetheart or lover)  
Trailbreaker- Subaltern/Warrior (Second In command)  
Hound- Future Father/Warrior  
Mirage- Future Inamorta/Currently unknown  
Triage- Läakäri (Healer)  
Flatline- Läakäri assistant  
First Aid- Läakäri neophyt (trainee in the future)  
Swerve- Läakäri neophyte (trainee in the future)  
Apelinq- Warrior  
Pyra Magna- Warrior  
SharpEdge- Warrior  
Blackshadow- Warrior  
Nautica- Warrior trainee  
CatSCAN- Paiman (herder)  
Outback- Paiman  
Beachcomber- Paiman trainee  
Scylla- Watcher  
Bumblebee- Watcher trainee  
BombBurst- Watcher  
Javelin- Watcher neophyte (trainee in the future)
> 
> Others:  
Pipes- Will not appear for a while  
Chromedome- Will not appear for a while

* * *

Ch. 1

“Lord Prime, do you have your representing creation?” A small green femme entered the office of the High Prime Lord's office with a datapad in her servo. She knew how important this potential alliance was for all of Iacon. Sitting at a desk was a large blue and red mech with his attention aimed at the terminal in the corner of the desk.

He looked away from the terminal to respond. “I do, my nephew Mirage. And the wilds leader? Has he made contact since the initial conversation?”

“No sir, but his translator from before is here to speak with you.” She folded her servos in front of her.

“Oh? Well bring him in.” He sat up straighter and the femme bowed her helm before leaving briefly. She returned with a visored mech that had small crystals wrapped around his arms, legs, and a few hung from his neck. “Lord Prime, may I present Wilds Clan member Jazz.”

Jazz smiled and bowed before stepping closer to the Prime. “My leader extends his apologies for not coming himself, but he is preparing his heir for the ceremony. I was sent to deliver the document on the eldest son that will be involved, as well as the signed contract.”

The mech pulled out the datapads from the satchel that was across his frame. He sat them on the desk before stepping back. Optimus took the datapads and looked at them before looking at Jazz quizzically. “There was an addition to the contract. It says that he wishes to stay in Iacon for a deca-cycle before the bonding ceremony.”

“Oh, right! Father Ultra Magnus wishes next Father Hound to spend time with your candidate in his natural environment. As well as have a chance to further learn your language. If you are okay with that.” Jazz smiled.

“I have no issue with that, I will have to let Mirage's guardian know. Will you be staying with Hound?” Optimus inquired as he sat down the datapads. He knew that the datapad on Hound's personal information would help Mirage, who was less than pleased to be handed off to the Wilds clan, but after nearly a century of fighting they came to an unsteady agreement.

The visored mech continued to smile, “if next Father Hound wishes for me to stay. If there isn't anything else to discuss, I should return before the rains come.” He bowed once more before turning and left to return to his clan.

The Wilds clan claimed a very large land, they had to in order to fuel everyone. The clan consisted of eighty mechs and femmes, not including the mecha-animals they kept. They may not have been the most technologically advanced people, but they lived happily without the large structures and the noise of the city. Their homes were carved out of the mountainside, they made all of their furniture by servo, and they had solar powered systems to properly light their homes.

Jazz finally returned by nightfall and was greeted by laughing younglings. He greeted them all with rubbing their nasal ridges together. They ran off when a large mech walked over to him with a dark green mech beside him. Jazz bowed with the traditional greeting. “My father, my future father.”

“Jazz, what news do you bring of the outlanders?” The tall blue and red mech asked after the greeting.

“He accepted the change of terms and will expect Hound a deca-cycle before the ceremony. He also welcomed my stay if Hound wants me to stay.” Jazz informed his leader before going on. “I also got a name, but no face of the future Inamorata. Mirage.”

The green mech finally spoke, he was still nervous over the whole arrangement. “Mirage. Sire maybe we can have Inferno go find out more about him?” Hound had belt of clear crystals going across his waist and then bright pink crystals wrapped around his upper right arm.

“No Hound, it will be during your visit.” Ultra Magnus had a layered necklace of colorful crystals. His left arm had black tribal markings painted on and his right arm was decorated in crystals.

“I know Sire, but I only wish to know what he is like.” Hound sighed before looking at Jazz. “Could you stay with me? You know more about the outlands than me.” The young mech was practically raised by Jazz whenever his Sire wasn’t around. And during the war between their clan and the outlanders, Jazz was always going there to gather intel for them along with recuing their people if they were captured. And because of this, Jazz was the most fluent in their language than anyone in the clan.

The mech nodded with a chuckle, “as you wish.”

In Iacon, a white and blue mech was sitting at the dining table with a plate of energon along with other items. Beside him was a white and black Praxian as he was going over a datapad. “Lord Mirage, you have to at least try and learn about their culture. The mech that made this, is extremely detailed and his Iaconian is amazing.”

“I don't want to learn about how those… things live. I'm a mech of nobility, actual nobility Prowl. I never wanted this, and now I'm being kicked from my home to go frag some gross old mech that lives in a jungle.” He set his glass down with his arms crossed over his chest. Mirage wanted to go back to the towers, back to his bachelor life, and never see his uncle again for doing this.

“You know exactly why you are being involved. And from the information on your future mate, Hound is actually around your age.” Prowl sat the datapad down.

Mirage groaned with annoyance before standing with his energon in his servo. “I'm going to my room.” He grumbled before going to his chambers with anger evident in his field. The mech didn't want to be mated off to some uncultured bot that was probably covered in rust and mud. The picture that was forming in the mech's processor was causing his tanks churn.

He went over to his large berth and sat down with a heavy ex-vent. The noble chugged his energon before throwing the glass at his door. Mirage didn't want to be handed off as some peace treaty. He laid down with the thermal blanket consuming his entire frame. The mech didn't want to think about his impending doom.

When Mirage was with his uncle it was nearly seven solar cycles after his discussion with Prowl, he was listening to him talking about the plans for that day. He spit out his energon in surprise when he heard what the Prime had said. Everyone at the table all looked at Mirage as his face contorted into disgust at the state he was now in.

“What did you just say? They're coming here? No, no way Uncle! It's bad enough I'm being forced to live with them, but to be seen with them!?” The young noble slammed his servos on the table with anger in his words.

“Mirage, that is enough. This arrangement is for the good and safety of both of our people. Their leader was a nice mech and spoke highly of his son. Hound and their translator is stay only for a deca-cycle so you two can get to know each other. He wishes to know our way of life to please you.” Optimus remained calm as he explained.

“If you wanted to have this peace so badly, then why not have one of the others do this!? I'm losing everything while everyone else gets something out of this stupid arrangement.” Mirage revved his engines in anger.

The Prime rose to his peds, which got everyone at the table to stop moving in astonishment and fear. “Mirage, enough of this sparkling attitude. All of the other lords with the same rank as you are already in a mating contracts. You were the only one that had yet to accept someone. You are going to be polite to our guests and stop judging these people, they are going to be your family soon.”

The white and blue mech sat back in his chair with his arms crossed. He looked away from his uncle with a frown on his face. “You can't make me love him.”

“No, but you may actually like them if you pushed aside your pride and prejudices.” The large red and blue mech slowly sat back down at the contact of his mate.

“Mirage dear, I was like you once. Before your uncle and I mated, I thought all Primes were arrogant and only cared about themselves. When I took the time to get to know him, I realized that I was wrong and now my only regret is that I didn't see that sooner.” His aunt was a white and pink femme. Her sister was Mirage's Carrier and became his legal guardian when both of his creators deactivated when he was young.

That mid-cycle Mirage was being detailed for the meeting. He didn't talk much as he looked at his reflection. The noble was pulled out of his thoughts when he heard the echo of the front door being knocked on. _I am not ready for this._ The detailers stepped back with proud smiles on their faces at their work.

“Is this to your expectations Lord Mirage?” A turquoise Tarn femme asked as she sat the paint brush into the bucket.

“It's fine.” He said quietly before the door to his washroom was opened. The mech looked up to see Prowl entering. “Are they here?”

The Praxian nodded, “they are in the study with Lord Prime and Lady Elita. If you're ready, I'll take you there.”

The polished mech looked at his reflection one more time before nodding. The mechs went down to the study, Prowl opened the doors and Mirage stopped in the doorway when he saw a forest green mech, lightly decorated in crystals, stand up from the couch. Their optics locked for an uncomfortable amount of time before the smaller multicolored Polyhexian tapped the mech on the arm.

He started clicking what almost sounded like gears. The green mech looked in realization before turning to the satchel that was sitting on the couch. He pulled out a long strand of thing wires that had a dozen small clear crystals with four larger blue crystals in the center. Hound walked towards Mirage and held it out in front of him.

He looked unsure about something, but finally spoke. “Gift. Your tradition, yes?”

Mirage nodded before taking it carefully. “It is. My name is Mirage.”

Hound looked slightly confused before looking back at the visored mech. They started clicking back and forth, and the green mech nodding in understanding. “Hound. Do you… like?”

“It is very unique. I've never seen anything like it.” Mirage answered honestly as he looked at it longer.

“Young lord, why don't we take his conversation to the couches?” Prowl advised with a gesture. Mirage nodded and Hound was quick to return to the other mech's side. The Iaconians sat on the couch across from them. “I'm Lord Mirage's guardian as well as his tutor.” He held his servo out to the visored mech.

He smiled and accepted the gesture before sliding his servo further up the Praxian's arm. “Jazz, I am many things in the clan, but I believe your Prime has labeled me as the translator. We know it isn't your way to have the participants of a courtship meet, but it would be smarter to combine both cultures.”

“I agree with you. And I have been reading that datapad you made for the young lord about your people. I'm impressed by how fluent you are.” Prowl answered politely.

While the two mechs spoke, Mirage was studying Hound quietly. He would look away when Hound's gaze would make its way over to him. The noble looked up and saw that Hound was staring at him. “Yes?”

“You are… unhappy.” Hound could smell it coming from his future bonded. He could tell that Mirage was not happy with any of this. Hound felt extremely out of place in such an expensive place. _He probably thinks we roll around in mud and act like animals._

“I… was not expecting to be mated off so soon.” Mirage could practically hear his uncle telling him to be polite. He wanted to voice his actual thoughts, but he was still a mech of nobility and wasn't going to give up his way of life for a bunch of wild mechs. “Are you staying here for your visit?”

Hound was still learning the language to better communicate with Mirage, but it was going to take longer than a quick visit. He did catch onto a few words and his processor filled in the gaps with what made the most sense. “No. Staying at the um-" the green mech looked at his friend for help.

“We are staying at one of the guest houses on the property. Did you have any questions or concerns about our traditions?” He directed his question at Mirage. Jazz knew that Hound was uncomfortable with being in here, just because everything looked so extravagant.

Prowl went to answer Mirage, but the young lord was faster. “Housing? How do you recharge?”

“Well it's not as big or amazing as you lot, but we make do.” Jazz smiled before talking to Hound, and a model sized hologram of the mountain they lived at appeared on the table between them. “We carved our homes into the mountainside. We have our lääkäri… medic in a separate structure in case of viruses happen. There is a large dugout where we hold meetings and celebrations. At the top of the mountain is where the leader lives. When you and Hound are done with your traditional honeymoon, you'll be living there.”

_I go from living in a mansion, almost a palace, to living in a cave! I may as well be stripped of my title. All of my friends will laugh at me._ Mirage stiffly nodded, biting his glossa to prevent the groan of disgust at having tiny Insecticons or whatever crawling all over him. “What do you do for fun Hound?”

“Exploring, scouting, collecting stuff.” Hound smiled excitedly as he held onto the satchel in his lap. “And you?”

“I usually spend time in the shopping district. We do sometimes hunt for sport.” Mirage answered his question.

The two mechs looked at the noble in shock. Prowl took their reaction as a negative blow to their beliefs. “I can have that activity removed from the roster during your stay.” Hound continued to frown at the thought of someone finding enjoyment in killing for fun. He looked at Jazz and clicked at him.

Jazz answered him before translating for their hosts. “We would appreciate that. We do not find enjoyment in killing unnecessarily. Even if an animal is being a nuisance to our clan, we try to relocate it and only kill it if it returns. Even then we mourn its deactivation.”

“I see.” Prowl nodded before looking at the two mechs. “Young Lord, perhaps we could show our guests the stables?”

“Okay.” He stood up and sat the gift on the table. Hound looked at himself and then at Jazz. He started clicking again.

Jazz tilted his helm with confusion before nodding. “Hound is right, we've had a long journey here. Maybe we should get some rest, perhaps a later time to have a tour?”

Prowl's wings perked in surprise, “that sounds okay. Would you like to join the family for fueling this evening?”

“We'll love too. Thank you.” Jazz led Hound to their temporary home. When they entered the large guest house, the Polyhexian looked at the green mech. “Hound, you were so excited on the way here. What's wrong?”

“Me. This whole thing Jazz! Mirage could give two scraps about me, the clan, or the bonding! He was disgusted with everything being said.” Hound sat on the couch with a distressed sound, his helm going into his servos. “I don't want to spend the rest of my functioning with a mech that hates me.”

Jazz smiled softly before sitting down beside the mech. He slid an arm around the other mech's arm. “Hound, do you remember when your Sire found me? And brought me to the clan? I was absolutely terrified of the unknown, I hated him for a long time but then I realized that the clan offered me more than anything the world I came from could. Mirage is just blinded by the prejudices and lies he was told. Just show him what we are truly like.”

The forest green mech looked at the multicolored mech quietly. “But how can I show him when he hates us? He only accepted my gift because he had too, not because he wanted. Maybe this trip was a bad idea.”

“Now don't be like that Hound, give it time. Just be yourself.” Jazz cupped Hound's face with a supportive smile. “Get some recharge, I'll wake you when we have to go to the evening meal.”

The future leader nodded before going up to one of the berth rooms. He looked at the luxurious room, only guessing how much time all off this took to make. The mech went over to the mirror that stood across from the berth, looking at his reflection. Hound normally didn't see anything wrong with how he looked but seeing how Mirage reacted to his tribal painting and his jewelry.

The mech started carefully removing the crystals until he reached for the light green and sky-blue crystal necklace. Hound smiled at the memories the simple jewelry gave him. He turned around when he saw a door connected to his room. The mech looked at the door he entered through but shook his helm.

_If I am going to impress Mirage, I need to do things on my own._ Hound entered the room and his sensory system was insulted by the smells that were building up behind the closed door. He bit his lip in uncertainty of everything that was there. Hound walked to a large white bowl like object, with a curious tilt of his helm.

A chuckle brought him out of his thoughts. Jazz was standing in the doorway with his arms crossed and his ankles crossed. “It's called a tub, it fills up with water, and it's used to get cleaned. Only thing I miss about the city, hot water.” The Polyhexian laughed before walking over and pushed the stopper down, and then turned on the water.

“Do you miss being with the outlanders?” Hound asked as he watched the water pour out of the faucet.

“Naw, too many rules and it was every mech for himself. No one really thought of everyone else, how their actions affected everyone. The clan is my family, my home now.” Jazz gestured at the filled tub. Hound hesitantly got in until the water came up mid-chest. The green mech groaned at the feeling of the hot water coaxing his cables to relax. Jazz laughed and grabbed a cloth, dunking it in the water before cleaning the mech. “If Father had another creation, I wouldn't see the problem in letting you decide if you wish to stay with the clan or not.”

Hound nodded in understanding with the statement. “Because the grieving cycle isn't over. Can I be the one to answer that involve our customs? I need the practice of speaking the language and Mirage could learn about us. Will there be other leaders at this meal? What if they say something about the clan?”

“Sure, I don't see the problem in that. If there is any translation issues, I'll help. As for others at the meal, I'm not entirely sure. I was never wealthy enough to dine with nobles before I joined the clan.” Jazz gently rubbed the paint off. “Fears and nerves out of the way, what do you think of the Lord?”

The green mech smiled at the thought of Mirage. “He's nice looking and bright too. Thank you for coming with me, I don't think I would be able to stay so calm without you.”

“I'll do anything for the clan and for you. All you need to do is ask.” Jazz wiped the paint off of Hound's cheek plate. Hound knew he could rely on Jazz to help him with any situation he had. “You have to realize Hound, relationships, no matter how it came to be, take both parties to make it work. You don’t have to do things that make you uncomfortable just to impress anyone.”

He nodded and held onto the crystals that were around his neck. “I know, but I want to have somewhat of a fighting chance.” The mech looked at the water that had turned into a rainbow of colors from all of the paint that was on his frame.

After the bath, Hound and Jazz went back to their rooms and take a small nap before the meal. When it came for the meal, they arrived back at the manor where the Prime, his mate, Prowl, Mirage, and several other mechs and femmes were gathering in the dining room. Hound had only the necklace around his neck to show where he came from, Jazz had stripped the markings except for the small one that wrapped around his forearm.

There were two empty spots besides Mirage, and Jazz told Hound that he was to sit beside his future mate. The nervous mech sat down and looked at Mirage briefly before looking at the spot in front of him. “Your markings are gone.” Mirage pointed out after some time.

“I thought you would… prefer it this way.” Hound rolled the large crystal in his digits. He looked at the others at the table, noticing all of the stares.

“So, what do your people call you, Hound?” Optimus asked as the servants brought out plates with assorted miniature energon cubes.

Hound looked at the Prime with a smile, “next Father until I… take over the clan. Then I will be Father. Mirage replaces Jazz as the Inamorata.”

Elita-one looked at the visored mech for clarification. Jazz finished the cube that he had in his mouth before answering. “Inamorata is like what you are, as the Inamorata you help the clan and help the Father with whatever is needed.”

“So, Hound is-" the pink femme looked between the two.

“Oh, no Hound is not mine. His Carrier was… taken from the clan when Hound was young.” Jazz said all that was needed to get the point across.

Hound was looking at the other diners, trying to get a clue as to how to eat the cubes that he hadn't touched yet. Mirage leaned close to help him, after some silent gestures from Prowl. “The blue ones are normal energon, pink is sweet, orange is acidic, and yellow is more on the heated side.”

The mech relaxed slightly and picked up one of the blue cubes like the others at the table. A white and red mech looked at the guests and decided to introduce himself. “My name is Ratchet, personal medic for the family. I am curious as to how you have survived so long without the technological advances we have.”

Hound looked confused at the mech, try to translate it in his processor. He looked at Jazz for help, and Jazz took that hint. “We have someone who takes care of our medical needs. If it's something we cannot do on our own, I come to the cities to get the equipment needed.”

“And sparklings? They can't survive without upgrades to protect them from viruses.” Ratchet placed a firm servo on the table, Hound snapped to attention. “We were only trying to integrate you lot into society for your own protection.”

Hound shook his helm, “we don't need them installed. Our bodies… evolved and we are sparked with them.”

Jazz grabbed Hound's servo and started clicking. The dark green mech relaxed and looked away. Jazz looked at the medic with an apologetic smile. “I understand that you only want what you think is best for us, but why change what doesn't need fixing? Our people only retaliated because you were taking our home away, killing our own. And in the heat of a battle confused your own for a member of the clan, and permanently scarred them.”

The others at the table all stared at Jazz who folded his servos under his chin. Hound looked at Mirage, “do you like the stars?” He wanted to get to know about the mech that he was about to spend the rest of his life with.

“If you haven't realized we're in the middle of a city. Can't exactly see the sky.” Mirage said as he avoided optic contact.

“Right.” Hound frowned and chose to just refuel quietly the rest of the meal. He wanted to make this mating work for the sake of both people, but when you have a stubborn intended mate it was hard to do your duty.

Mirage was watching the green mech beside him and saw how miserable he looked. When he saw that he was not covered in paint and crystals, a part of him was taken aback by the gesture of wanting to appeal to him. He looked at his Uncle as he was in the middle of a discussion with his advisor, Roadbuster. “Uncle, may I be excused?”

“Yes.” He answered curtly before going back to the conversation.

The young noble stood up and looked at the green mech. “Come on, we had discussed about seeing the stables." Hound looked up at Mirage in surprise and looked at his guardian before looking back up at Mirage. He quickly stood up and followed Mirage outside the back of the manor.

The two said nothing as they walked to a building that was smaller than the guest houses, but Hound could already tell that there were a lot of creatures inside. The mech took a deep intake as he took in all of the smells, smiling happily. Mirage opened the doors, lights brightened the large stable, and Hound was instantly excited when he saw a few chronohorses.

Hound stepped in front of stall that had a large violet and silver chronohorse standing inside it. Mirage went to warn him that it wasn't trained yet, but the green mech held his servo out with soft clicks. The elongated helm bobbed with neighs as it moved around in the stall. After a few moments the chronohorse gently pressed its snout in Hound's servo. “Wow, she has never let us touch her.” Mirage looked at the mech as he rubbed their faces together. _Probably doesn't even know what I'm saying. Primus could have at least learned some words before coming._

“I used to play in the fields with a herd of chronohorses when I was small.” Hound looked at the mech with a smile on his face. “Sorry if I'm slow on my… conversing. My processor is still adapting. Jazz has been helpful in teaching me.”

The mech looked at the mecha-animal and then Mirage. He took his servo, placing it gently in the end of the snout. “Does she have… name?”

“Name? Don't be ridiculous, it's just an animal.” Mirage dropped his servo and looked at him as if he said the oddest thing ever.

Hound laughed softly with a shake of his helm. “Naming forms bond. She may respect you.” He leaned his back against the gate, the animal sat her helm on his shoulder, and he started laughing from her nibbling at his frame.

“Then you name her.” Mirage crossed his arms with his helm turned to look at the other mech-animals that were either watching or doing whatever it was they did. Hound sighed and shook his helm before looking back at the creature. The noble mech looked at his intended mate with his arms folded behind his back. “What do you suggest for name?”

A soft, thoughtful hum came from the larger mech before he answered with a smile aimed at the other. “Ära. It means honor.”

_Honor? _Mirage nodded thoughtfully as he looked at the chronohorse. “Can you say it again?”

Hound nodded and fully faced his intended, saying it at a slower speed. Mirage attempted at saying the word, but the green mech shook his helm with chuckles. “No, no, no. Roll ‘r' like revving engines. Ära.”

“Ära?” Mirage said slowly and saw the big grin on Hound's lips. “Perhaps we could take some time out of our schedules, and teach each other some words?”

_I suppose Hound isn't too much of a wild creature if he's being so civil. _Mirage thought to himself. Hound nodded with a smile. “I would like that. Teach me a word.”

Mirage knew it was a request, but he figured stating what he wanted was easier for Hound. He lifted a servo to his chin in thought. The mech wanted to give him an easy word to learn, but he couldn't think of one. Until his optics landed on Hound's chest, and he got his word. “Spark. We will start with that one.”

Hound attempted at saying it, getting stuck when he kept hitting the middle of the word. Mirage shook his helm and helped him along. “The ‘a' makes the same sound as it does as it does in my name.” He pronounced both words slowly, exaggerating each sound. Hound copied Mirage, only saying it normally when he saw the small approving smile.

The two were interrupted when Hound caught sight of Jazz and Prowl walking into the stables. The visored mech started clicking and spoke their language. “Hound, it's time to return to the guesthouse. I'm going to be taking you into the city for sightseeing.” The two Iaconians looked at the two as they continued speaking in a calm manner.

The green mech nodded before looking at Mirage. “Will I see you tomorrow?”

Mirage turned to his guardian for his schedule, which got Hound to look at Prowl too. The Praxian pulled up his charge's list for the next day. “You have a morning meeting at the café with the twins, a meeting with the Lord Prime mid-cycle, but after that you are free.”

“Not until the evening unless my meetings end sooner.” Mirage shortened what Prowl had said for Hound's sake. Hound nodded, seemingly understanding the busy schedule. “I will see you tomorrow.”

Hound smiled and nodded, “I look forward. Night.”

Jazz put a servo on Hound's back and led him to the house. “You seem happy. Guessing you are reconsidering about this being a bad idea? What would you like to see tomorrow?”

“Do you have to ask?” Hound gave him a cheeky grin, and Jazz shook his helm with a laugh. “Jazz, do the outlanders not appreciate the animals? Mirage was surprised when I asked for the chronohorse’s name.”

The Polyhexian nodded, “they don't see the point in naming things that will deactivate.”

“But we give our creations names, and we all deactivate one day. These outlanders are confusing about their beliefs in life. What do they think of me? That lääkäri was very angry at us.” Hound looked down at the shorter mech.

“There is still slight tension, but that's to be expected after a war. The Prime understands that it will take you and your future Inamorata to form a connection. And he is right, it does take time for emotions to form. Did I ever tell you that your Sire saw me as a reminder of your Carrier's deactivation? I blamed the clan for everything that happened to me, but then our entire viewpoint of each other changed one lunar cycle.” Jazz love Hound as if he was his own creation.

The mech listened to the visored mech quietly. He had heard the story about how Jazz had run away from the clan, going deep into the forbidden section of the forest, and his Sire rescued him from a pack scavengers. “I want to make it work with Mirage, but I can tell he doesn't. How can I convince him to give it a chance?”

“Just be honest with him and be yourself. Now, get some recharge Hound. We have a lot to do tomorrow.” Jazz gave the mech a hug and a kiss on the top of his helm.

Hound returned the hug before going to his room. He looked at the berth with a bit of recognition, but it wasn't as artful as the ones they made for their homes. The mech took all the pillows from the head of the berth, tossing them all on the floor, and he laid on top of the blankets. He had all the windows open and he allowed a smile to slide on his lips as he drifted into stasis.

* * *


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wild clan language:  
sestra- Sister  
Frér- Brother  
Läakäri- Healer  
Paiman- Herder  
Watcher- Camp guard/youngling sitter  
Father- Leader of clan  
Inamorata- The Father's mate  
Subaltern- Second-in-command

* * *

Ch. 2

Hound was increasingly less excited about exploring the civilized community, thanks to all of the sounds and displeasing smells. He sometimes even had to block his nose when the passed a traffic jam. “You called _this _home, Inamorata? This is messing with my sensors.” The green mech complained to Jazz as he took him into a detailing shop. “What's this?”

“It's called a detailing shop; we give the bot credits to paint us.” Jazz explained before adding to the previous question. “Not Iacon specifically, but Polyhex was no better. Don't worry we'll go for a run afterwards.”

The green mech nodded in relief. He went to ask something, but a blue femme popped out from behind the counter with a smile on her face. “Welcome to Paintorium, my name is Vision. Did you have an appointment today?”

“No, we're just looking at the paints.” Jazz smiled at her before signaling for Hound to follow him down an aisle. “See any colors you like?”

“Why are we painting ourselves? I thought we came here to be painted?” Hound asked as he looked at the different cans while gently poking the objects hesitantly.

The femme from the counter looked at the two in growing recognition. “Primus, you're the Lord Prime's guests. Primus, I am so sorry.”

“Oh, no it's okay. We are just looking.” Jazz answered with a wave of his servos and a guilty laugh. Hound looked at the visored mech with a tilt of his helm, and they both started conversing. The visored mech continued leading Hound through the aisles, explaining everything he could the best he could.

Hound sniffed the air and he looked up slowly when he could smell Mirage. He started walking off, forgetting to tell Jazz and took to scouting for his future mate. The green mech stuck as close to the shadows as possible while he followed the scent until he saw Mirage sitting on the patio of a little café with a pair of mechs. Hound saw how relaxed his future mate was around the two. He figured he could learn about Mirage and his friends if he just listened in on them. Quickly the mech hid around the corner of the building with his receptors turning up to full volume.

“Enough about business, is it true? Your uncle is making you spark bond with that Wilds mech?” The red mech asked with excitement in his question.

Mirage nodded with a slight groan. “And per usual I get no say in any of it. Uncle has already taken the deed to my penthouse.”

“You wouldn't catch me going out there, peace or not. Can you just image what that environment would do to my paintjob? How do they even fuel? What about their sparklings? I heard they steal orphans because they can't keep theirs online.” The yellow mech gossiped.

Mirage shook his helm and took a sip of his energon before answer. “Well the translator they have seems to find a way to stay somewhat presentable. Well from what I can tell they fuel like anyone of us. Hound got offended when our medic asked about sparkling health.”

“Hound?” They both asked the future Inamorata. The yellow scoffed with slight disgust. “Even sounds wild.”

Mirage laughed, “yeah I suppose. He is a strange mech, gave me some crystals as a courting gift.” The mech pulled them out of his subspace and held up the necklace for the other two to look at it. Hound dug his digits into the side of the building. “You should've seen him when we first met. Helm to ped in weird markings and crystals.”

“Woah, wonder how many credits we could get from these? Woah! Is that what I think it is?” The red twin took the necklace and started examining the dark blue crystal that was the center piece of the jewelry. “Raj, do ya know what this is!? It's Primal quartz. It's seriously fragging rare.”

Hound had enough with the insults and left to go return to Jazz. When he saw the mech looking around nervously, until he spotted Hound. Jazz rushed over and hugged him quickly. “Hound, why did you leave? Where did you go?”

“This was a mistake. I want to go home. Tell Sire to call it off, I'm not going to bring _that_ into our clan.” Hound clenched his fists as he felt betrayal from a mech he barely knew.

“Hound, what happened?” Jazz took his shaking servos. The Polyhexian had never seen Hound so angry in his lifetime. Never once did the mech raise his voice or have his field wreak of utter rage.

The green mech put a servo to his as he blew up in anger. “He thinks I'm a freak! They kept calling me wild and insulted our way of life! He only cares about his credits, whatever those are, and himself! And he had my gift in that thing you have! I have _tried_ to be something that wouldn't embarrass him, but nothing I will do will make him happy! I want out!”

Everyone around them may not have understood what was being said, but they knew anger when they saw one. Jazz nodded and continued to sooth the angry mech. “I will speak to your Sire. Go to the house, and tomorrow we'll return to the clan. I'm sorry my dear Hound.”

When Mirage returned to the manor he saw Prowl waiting at the entrance with that expression the young noble knew all too well. “What happened this time to annoy uncle?”

“I don't know, you tell me my lord.” Prowl's wings twitched in disapproval while he held out a datapad for the white and blue mech. “Jazz handed it to Lord Prime when they returned from town.”

_It has come to the attention to the leaders of the Wilds Clan that the noble Mirage is not happy with the arrangements and has expressed his desire for a peace is not in his best interests. Therefore, we no longer wish to continue the mating ceremony. We thank you for your hospitality, but we will no longer wish for an alliance between our people._

Mirage looked up at his guardian with a frown of absolute confusion. “I don't understand. Hound and I were going to work it out later today. What made him change his mind? I need to speak to uncle.” Prowl was trying to stop him from the wrath the Lord Prime was currently in.

When the two entered Optimus was quick to his peds as his large fist slammed on the desk in front of him. “One solar cycle Mirage! One slagging solar cycle and you manage to destroy our only chance at peace! Will you stop thinking about yourself for one klik!”

“I didn't do anything! And it's not my responsibility to be thrown around to _please_ _them!_” Mirage retaliated and his aunt stood up from her spot.

“Mirage dear, your loose glossa really upset Hound as well as offended his entire way of life. He showed us a recording of you speaking with those twins. They already left.” Elita-one kept her voice leveled but firm before continuing. “And we feel that until you can figure things out, we are freezing your accounts.”

The mech's jaw dropped and he blew up on the pink femme. “You're punishing me!? Haven't you done enough by taking my home from me!?”

The large mech went around his desk and pointed a digit in his nephew's face. “Don't _ever _raise your voice at your aunt again. We were going to use the funds we got from your penthouse to give to you both to buy a summer home in Crystal City, but now that he's backed out because of your stupidity be glad I'm giving the funds to you to keep you stable until you find a job.”

“But uncle, this is ridiculous all I did was agree to the rumors about me being mated off to him. I still don't understand what I said wrong.” Mirage crossed his arms with a glare. Elita played the recording and Mirage's field shrank when he heard what he had said. “Okay, I may have said those things, but I'm not the only one who thinks it.”

“There are such things as private thoughts Mirage. And now who is to say they won't try to start another war?” Optimus asked Mirage with anger still evident in his voice. “I have arranged for a small apartment in Uraya for you. I will leave the job hunt for you. Perhaps some humility and actual responsibility will teach you something you lack.”

The young lord felt like his world shattered when he realized what his uncle was doing. “You're kicking me out?”

“No. Yes.” His aunt and uncle both said at the same time. Elita-one shot a glare at her mate before turning and speaking to her nephew. “You’re uncle believes that it’s best that you… reevaluate yourself. I convinced him to allow you to stay with us for a ten solar cycles Mirage.”

The mech looked over at Prowl for him to back him up, but the Praxian kept his helm aimed away. _So much for being on my side, traitor._ Mirage frowned and looked away with a defeated sigh. “I’m going to my room, while it’s mine at least.” The mech left the room with the door slamming shut behind him. He went straight to his chambers with a heavy groan into the pillow before comming the twins. ::I hate you both right now.::

::What’d we do!?:: They’re voices came through at the same time.

::Because of Sideswipe’s stupid question about Hound, he somehow heard and broke off the whole thing. And now I’m being punished! My uncle froze my accounts, sticking me in Uraya, and expects me to get an _actual_ job.:: Mirage rolled onto his back with another heavy sigh. He pulled the necklace from his subspace to look at it some more.

::What no way! Well on the bright side, you won’t have to live with all that dirt and grime. Oh, shut it Sunstreaker. What it’s true!:: Sideswipe and Sunstreaker started arguing.

Mirage groaned and dropped his arm beside him. He was used to them arguing when the three of them talked. ::Yeah, well normally I would agree with you both, but the purpose of us mating was for peace and unity.::

There was silence before a collected ‘oh’. ::And because we all blabbed it pissed the wilds off. Just make it up to him then, pay them off or something. All mechs can be bought off with credits.:: Sunstreaker said casually.

::You two are zero help. I’m disconnecting.:: Mirage disconnected from the call before tossing the necklace on the nightstand before rolling over with a heavy sigh.

Hound was pushing his lunar cycle meal around with his digit before standing up from his spot next to his Sire and left the low-rise table where the clan all fueled at. When he returned to the clan without Mirage, who the clan all knew as to be the Inamorata, they asked what happened and after it came to light many of the warriors got battle ready. It wasn’t until Ultra Magnus and Jazz told them to leave the outlanders alone that they reluctantly removed their battle markings. Hound didn’t know why he was so upset about ending the peace treaty, he knew from the beginning that Mirage didn’t care for their way of life, but piece of him had hope that perhaps he should’ve staid an proved him wrong.

The green mech went to his favorite spot to get away from the others, which was the largest Cyber-organic plant that the clan used as a rite of passage for the younglings. He climbed to the very top and reclined the large trunk as he looked at the crystal around his neck thoughtfully. “Carrier, why does this hurt? I only knew him for two solar cycles, but when he said those things it was like if Sire said it.”

Hound may have not known his Carrier, but with her necklace it was like she was with him. He looked up at the starry night sky while their cyberwolves and astrofoxes were howling at the two full moons in the sky. The sound of the soft metal leaves rustling near him got his attention. His little sister, Pyra Magna, still struggled maneuvering through the foliage and while Hound found it amusing he did help her up. “Glad you still find amusement in my suffering. You alright?”

Hound nodded as he slowly looked back up at the sky with his digits twirling the small rock. “I suppose as well as I can be. Did he send you here as Sire or Father?”

“Carrier sent me as a worried Inamorata. I told them to let me go with, really would show them how _wild_ we are.” Pyra Magna said with a rev of her engines and a clench of her fists.

“And I’m glad they didn’t because I would rather not have to translate every slur you would have thrown at them. Your vile glossa would have started a second war. It’s fine Pyra, really. I’m still Next Father, I’ll just have to find someone else.” He gave his sister a glance, noticing the small blue crescent moon in the center of her forehelm. “Who’s the lucky bot?”

Pyra Magna perked up with a smile while her slender digits touched the marking. “Subaltern Trailbreaker. I know it’s not the greatest of timings, but he brought up to me a last hunting cycle.”

“At least one of us is happy. I’m happy for you sestra.” Hound smiled before getting serious. “I just hope that the outlanders are as mature as we are with not attacking. They may have more technology, but they forgot how to use their senses.”

The green and red femme perked up and slapped him on the shoulder. “Ah there’s the Hound I know! Come on let’s go cause trouble for the paimen in the solar cycle.”

“I’ll be right behind ya.” Hound flashed a smile before she started making her way down the large tree. He chuckled with a shake of his helm and looked back up at the stars. “Good lunar cycle Carrier.”


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The zap ponies, chronohorses, astrofoxes, apeoids, nosorons,and cyberwolves are canon in Transformers. 99.9% of the characters in this writing is canon as well. Most of the outlier abilities the clan has are canon while I just took some of their skills and made it into an outlier ability.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Clan modifications:  
Ultra Magnus- hydraulics that can level an 8 mile radius circle  
Jazz- creates and manipulates soundwaves   
Hound- creates holograms  
Pyra Magna- alters gravity  
Natuica- travel at the speed of light  
Beachcomber- can talk to the wildlife  
Bumblebee- shoots non-lethal stingers  
First AId- field sensitive  
Swerve- sensors in his servos  
Javelin- can see the future (highly unpredictable)  
Mirage- invisiblity  
Trailbreaker- creates force fields  
Triage- has an advanced defibrillator   
Flatline- can create new body parts from any metal readily available  
Apelinq- has super strength in his servos  
SharpEdge- has a natural external coating that his frame secretes to protect him from acid rain   
Blackshadow- produces sonic shockwaves by breaking the sound barrier while flying at low altitudes  
CatSCAN- long range infrared scanner  
Outback- quad tank treads  
Scylla- is seen as almost unnaturally beautiful by outlanders  
BombBurst- turns into a large energon sucking creature (goes feral)  
Pipes- emit clouds of corrosive gases from his exhaust pipes  
Chromedome- He was sparked with needle-like digits on his right servo (becomes highly addictive)

* * *

Ch. 3

Hound was crouched low in the foliage with his servo carved dagger in one servo and the other was holding back his cyber wolf partner, Hellhound, while they observed the outlanders search around for something. The large cyberwolf started growling louder which caught their attention. The green mech wrapped his servo around the creature’s snout. “Shut it.” He warned as he guided the large beast further down the brush.

“Come on, now that the Lord Prime isn’t dealing with the beasts, the boss wants fresh plating.” A large black mech told the other four mechs and femmes that were cutting down the overgrowth. Hound gripped his dagger with his denta clenched. It had been a meta-cycle since the mech broke off the mating with Mirage, and this was the first time he had seen the outlanders in their territory.

“Can we just hurry up? This place gives me the creep.” A white and purple femme shuttered as she looked around them.

A red seeker glared at her with his arms crossed. “We would if we could find the slagging camp. They moved it since that one time the boss got their femme and that fancy looking one.” Hound was now growling when they dared insulted not only Jazz, but his Carrier was what tipped him over the edge. The Seeker’s wings twitched, and he looked around with his blaster going into his servo. “Who’s there?”

Hound knew he should have gone back to the clan, but he didn’t want to risk them spotting him. He released Hellhound and jumped up as he grabbed the spear that was lying beside his ped. The wolf howled before jumping at the femme. The green mech shouted as he threw the spear into the wing of the Seeker. The outlanders all started firing at Hound and his companion. “Don’t damage the beast!”

“Which one!?” A voice called out while he tried to grab the slippery Hound. “Hold still will ya?” Hound got up close just long enough to punch the mech in the face. He jumped with his dagger in front of his face as he growled deeply. They started circling him and the wolf with their weapons pointed at the two.

“Call off your attack dog mech, and we won’t kill it.” The black mech ordered as he pointed at Hellhound in hopes Hound would understand him. The future leader of the clan growled and dug his ped into the ground, getting ready to attack but he stumbled forward when one of them shot him in the back. “I warned you, net ‘em boys!” The leader of the group swirled a digit in the air before he shot Hellhound in the side. The cyberwolf yelped as he collapsed with energon no sooner pooling around him.

“No!” Hound shouted as he saw his friend leak out. He tried to get up to fight as rage fueled him, but a loud rev of an engine got the outlanders to freeze as flocks of the avian life flew up in a fury. The green mech knew exactly who that was, and he knew they were all in deep slag. “You better leave now before you meet your Outlander Gods.”

The leader looked at him and pointed his blaster in his face. “What did you say? Come on out or the punk gets it!” He looked around while the others pointed in the foliage. There was no response, but a pack of four very large, very heavy Nosorons charged out from the trees. They swung there long sharp horns in any direction they could to get the retreating bots. Nosorons were bigger than Hound and could crush anyone who was unlucky to get under ped of them. They’re armor was very thick to help protect them from the severe weather, so laser fire was almost ineffective against them, unless you were able to get the exposed under jaw. “Don’t run away you cowards! Shoot back, they’re just dumb mechanimals!”

Ultra Magnus, Jazz, and a black mech with a red visor stepped out into the clearing with spears in their servos. A few of the Outlanders, the ones that managed to avoid the charge, froze at the sheer size of the leader of the clan, others made comments about how easy it would be to take down the three of them. Jazz looked at Hound and spoke with a smile of relief that he was okay, well okay until they returned to their home.

“Hound, make a hologram of a large Dinobot.” Hound nodded and the leader of the outlanders demanded to know what was being said. Jazz knew this mech, remembering him all too clearly, but he assumed that with all of the paint markings on his frame he didn’t recognize him. “That _spurium_.”

Hound looked behind the mech that was holding him hostage and created a hologram of a blown-up version of a t-rex that slowly rose above the canopy. The mech knew that there were others hidden away from view so while the hologram made a muted roar someone made the sound for him. While the outlanders were dazed, Hound drove his elbow into the black mech’s mid-section, and in reaction was thrown to the ground as he recoiled slightly. He was quick to grab Hellhound and they ran off into the foliage.

“No, don’t let them get away!” The mech had snapped out of it when the hologram fizzled out. A few of them ran after the four mechs while others remained behind.

The four mechs had quickly grown into a group of ten as they ran through the forest. Hound went to speak to his Sire, but Jazz gave him a shake of his helm as he gestured for him that it was best to be quiet. He knew he royally fragged up and was going to get a receptor full once they returned. The mech looked at the injured mechanimal in his arms and occasionally whispered words of encouragement. One of the fliers flew alongside Ultra Magnus.

“The outlanders are not very quiet Father. We’ve already found their camp near the watering hole where the herd goes.” She revealed while adjusting her flying to avoid getting caught in the low hanging vines.

“We will not have these outlanders in our territory anymore. Gather warriors and prepare for battle.” Ultra Magnus ordered and the femme nodded before she flew back into the sky. He called out another order, “Trailbreaker take a few of the others to make sure we are not being followed.” The black mech nodded and signaled at the few that were on his left, and they veered off course.

Those that remained with the three mechs all returned to their camp. A few of the younger generation went to greet them on their return, but when they saw the state that Hound was in they stopped in their pursuit. Jazz looked at his adoptive son and held his arms out with a supportive smile. Hound reluctantly handed his friend over to the Polyhexian and watched him hustle him to a small cabin a bit of ways. The green mech felt the glare aimed at the back of his helm, and when he slowly turned to see his Sire’s stern gaze aimed at him they said nothing as they went for the large mountain.

“Sire, I know I messed up, but I couldn’t just let them go! They were going to do what they did before!” Hound spoke first before Ultra Magnus could get a word out. They walked through the dimly lit cave until it opened up to a well-lit space that had a tall walk path that spiraled upwards. There were carved out holes in the walls that had small flames lighting their way, and on the floor of the walk path were solar powered lights to further help the clan see where they were going. When the large mech said nothing, it made Hound nervous. “Sire aren’t you going to say something?”

“I am trying _really_ hard not to smack some sense into you Hound. What you did not only risked your own life, but the safety of the _entire_ clan! What would have happened if we hadn’t come? You are the next Father Hound; you have to think about the entire clan not just yourself. We have lost too many of our own to those outlanders.” Ultra Magnus had his moment of yelling before controlling himself. They reached the very top of the mountain to where Jazz and Ultra Magnus lived along with Hound’s younger siblings.

Inside was a large open space that had a large window that let in the natural light, there was a low-rise table in the center of the room that had cushions all around it, a couple servo made couches around the table as well, there was a fireplace carved out, the open space was filled with servo made decoration, and there were five spots that led to other rooms.

“I know, I know okay? It’s just when they talked about Carrier and Jazz, it just angered me.” Hound sat on one of the cushions while his Sire sat across from him. He looked around noting how quiet it was. “Where are the little ones?”

“With Watcher Scylla. You have become reckless with your choices as of late my son. You’re not still caught up with that disaster back at the Outlands, are you?” He looked at his son, watching him and reading his field. Hound looked away with a frown. A sigh escaped the Father. “Hound, you cannot keep ahold of something was never going to happen. I know you wished it would be different, but this Mirage was just too caught in his way of life. That’s just how outlanders are.”

Hound looked into his Sire’s optics with a frown as he spoke defensively. “Put what about Jazz? He came from the outlands, but he still accepted to be your Inamorata. I mean sure he goes back to the outlands, but he told me that the clan was his family and he would never go back to _them_.”

“Yes, there are some exceptions, but do you think Mirage would have wanted to give up his lifestyle for us?” The mech inquired and Hound sighed as he looked down with a frown. He knew that his Sire was right, especially when he had seen where Mirage had lived, but his spark still wanted to hold onto that brief moment where they connected. “Go see Läakäri about that shoulder. And as punishment for this whole thing, you get to watch over your siblings until the next full moons.”

Hound gawked and went to retaliate, but Ultra Magnus was quick to put a stop to that with a firm stare and a servo in the air. “Yes sir.” He left to go get patched up.

In Uraya, Mirage was walking home from his second shift at his minimum pay job. It had been almost one and a half meta-cycles since everything happened, and the former noble had lost a lot of his former life. Almost all of his friends blacklisted him, the only ones that would still talk to him were the twins, and he barely saw his aunt or uncle because he was busy with trying to make ends meet. He was making his way back to his apartment before he was stopped by a collection of missing posters that were being put up by an enforcer.

The white and blue mech looked at the femme as she put the last one up. “Who are they?” He asked her with a gesture at the several posters.

“The idiots told their families they were going on an expedition into the wilds. Probably got eaten by the wildlife or contracted viruses.” She said without any real concern before leaving Mirage to stare at the posters. He touched his right wrist where the necklace he still kept was coiled around. Sideswipe had tried convincing his friend to just sell it and get extra credits to get back to Iacon, but Mirage couldn’t bring himself to do it. He kept it with him as a bit of encouragement to keep pressing forward and as a reminder of how he got to where he was today.

_Why are bots going to the wild lands? Do they not realize what could happen if another war happens?_ The ex-noble shook his helm at how idiotic they all were. He continued his walk back to the apartment, not finding the point of dealing with the pits of traffic just for a few blocks. Mirage had been working as server at a pretty popular restaurant in the city. The amount of credits he made from his normal paycheck and his tips was just _barely_ enough to pay rent and fuel him. At the beginning, Mirage didn’t believe his uncle when he said he froze his accounts until he tried to gain access to it. He also was stubbornly refusing to look for a job until the site manager threatened to kick him out if he didn’t have his rent paid.

“Mirage, rent is due!” A grumpy old mech popped his helm out of the manager’s office when Mirage walked into the building.

“Yeah, yeah I know. Give me a slagging klik to put my things away.” Mirage waved him off while opening his mailbox and was relieved when he saw that the package he asked Prowl to send to him was there. He went up the stairs with the package under his arm, stopping in front of the fourth door down the hall. The mech tried to ignore the couple that were making out in front of their door, but he made the poor decision to look over his shoulder before quickly fumbling with his keycard to go into the slot that unlocked their respective doors. He finally managed to get the thin plastic to get in and retreated inside with the door slamming shut behind him. “Ew, I did _not_ need to see that.”

Mirage’s apartment was the size of his chambers alone, which didn’t entirely bother the mech, no it was the physical state the apartment was in. When he first arrived at the apartment with what he deemed was important, he had full blown cried in the empty space. Of course, he didn’t dare do it in front of anyone else, but he knew he had no one else to blame but himself for his predicament. There was a small section that was a kitchen, living area, and dining area all in one, one door led to his room, and the other was a small washroom. Mirage didn’t see the point in having his old berth in the apartment, because it was way too big for the room alone. He sat the package down on the counter before emptying his subspace, and then transferred the rent to the management office.

Mirage went over to the other side of the kitchen where a small external comlink sat. He hooked it up so that while he was working or too busy to answer his comlink, all of the messages would be stored on the machine rather than taking up space in his comm system. He pressed the button to play any messages while he opened up the box with excitement.

::Hey Raj, Sunny and I… Don’t call me that! Anyways, _Sunshine_ and I are going clubbing tonight in your area, and you should totally come!:: Sideswipe sounded perky as always.

The next message got him to stop in the middle of pulling out the package he had delivered. ::Mirage, it’s your aunt. I need you to comm me back as soon as you can.:: There were five other messages, but Mirage had heard the urgency in her voice and quickly commed her back. ::Thank Primus Mirage, it’s your uncle. He’s thinking about sending a platoon to the wilds for those missing bounty hunters! He doesn’t want to listen to me, I need you to come back to Iacon and help me knock some sense into him.::

::Aunt Elita, Uncle would _never_ listen to me! Besides what proof does he or any of the others have that _they_ are the ones for their disappearance? It isn’t like they are the only lifeforms in that area.:: Mirage pulled out a small box that once belonged to his Carrier. He nearly had a panic attack when he didn’t see the golden box in his things.

::I don’t know, but he’s talking about leading the platoon.:: She still had a worrisome tone in her words. Mirage knew that she was really worried for her mate, and the mech couldn’t blame her for being concerned. ::Please, I know you two haven’t been on the best of terms since everything, but I need you.::

::Okay, okay I’ll come over tomorrow.:: Mirage broke and he could hear his aunt sigh with absolute relief. ::I have to go now, love you aunt.::

There was a shocked gasp that came from Elita-one and Mirage rolled his optics. ::You said- aww Mirage you haven’t said that in forever. Aww I think I’m going to cry.::

Mirage sighed heavily and disconnected from the comlink before his aunt could go on. He went to the washroom and started taking a shower with barely working hot water. _I really miss hot baths._ The mech pressed his helm against the wall with his shoulders dropping. “She’s crazy if she thinks he would listen to me after I failed making him happy.” He touched his wrist with another sigh. “I wish I had a chance to apologize.”

The ex-noble commed the twins and told him he didn’t feel like partying, which wasn’t entirely false, but his frame was aching from work as well as the fact he didn’t feel like socializing. He fueled from low grade energon before going to his room and laid down with a heavy groan after finally getting off his peds. This had become almost the norm for Mirage, but thankfully he had a bit of home with him. “Miss you both.”

It was really late into the lunar cycle and a tapping noise pulled Mirage from stasis. At first he thought it was the slagging flock of avians that always did this, but went it continued even after the pillow was thrown at the window Mirage finally moved onto his next suspects. “What part of ‘I don’t want to go clubbing’ did you two not-” He stopped in the middle of his rant when he saw Jazz hanging from above his berth room window. Mirage shouted as he fell out of his berth, he wasn’t going to believe that the Polyhexian was really there, but when he peeked over the berth and saw that he was still there the mech reacted.

The white and blue mech opened the window and stepped back to let him flip inside. He took a few more steps back with a frown, “how’d you find me?”

“I did used to be one of your people Mirage, I know how to use a directory. We need to talk.” Jazz said with a misleading smile, but the black servo firmly holding Mirage’s arm was enough to tell the mech that he wasn’t playing around. He sighed and gestured for him to the rest of the apartment. “Not exactly something I figured a mech of your pedigree would be caught dead in.”

“Well when you fail your duty and your uncle is the Lord Prime, he felt that he was being nice by stripping me of everything. What happened to those bounty hunters?” Mirage kept himself on guard, not knowing what the wilds mech could possibly want from him. He used the missing bounty hunters to avoid anything regarding Hound.

The visored mech sat on the couch with his arms resting on the back of the couch with his legs opened wide. Noble Mirage would have sneered and called Jazz a few choice names, but Mirage now was used to this from the twins and a few customers at the restaurant doing it. He sat in the small arm chair, noting how relaxed Jazz looked. “I bet that was a big blow to your ego. You know a century ago this was my kind of place. Small, cozy, perfect place to write music. That’s what I used to do before I left; was a decent musician, made decent creds too. My employer wasn’t all too happy that a punk from the slums of Polyhex outshined his precious daughter, so he paid some mechs to botnap me and throw me into the wilds. Some bounty hunters mistook my musician artwork for tribal and took me to their base for the black market biz.”

“That must have been terrifying, but wouldn’t you being able to speak our language enough to tell them?” Mirage frowned with confusion.

Jazz scoffed with a forced laugh, “right? But, no they figured they were trying to learn your language to blend in long enough to kill everyone. And to answer your question, we had a bit of a… disagreement.” He gestured at Mirage’s wrist. “You know, you could get out of Uraya if you sold that.”

Mirage covered it with the other servo. “I am aware, but… how is he? I know I have no right to know, not after how I insulted him. It was extremely rude of me to even say. But I didn’t mean any of it.”

“You did, you may not have meant to be rude, but you expressed your thoughts. Mirage, you have to remember I was in the same boat as you. Well minus the pompous life. My mate, before we became mates, had walked in on the Carrier of his only son being killed. He blamed me for her deactivation and hated me for what _my people_ did to his. It took a long time for either of us to realize we were both victims, and we took the time to know each other’s sparks.” Jazz explained a bit of how he came to be a part of the clan. “I thought the same you did; I mean who would want to abandon a clean home, with a secured job, and energon already processed for easy consumption? But I promise, our home isn’t what the schools paint it. Given before we moved to the mountain we did live in the trees, but they started cutting them down, so we upped and left.”

The mech fiddled with the bracelet with his helm bending down. “My uncle is planning on starting another war for the bounty hunters. He thinks that you guys took them as payback or something.”

“Well what do you plan on doing about that? We may not have the numbers, but we know the territory far more than any of you.” The visored mech sat up straight before letting Mirage read his field. “You didn’t give my future Father a chance to show you any of our world or learn about yours. We are not your problem anymore; you should be happy.”

The white and blue mech clenched his servos with his jaw clenched. “I know I get it! I let my pride and ego have control of me, and I regret it okay?! I realize that I should have given it a chance. But I want a second chance Jazz, I want to learn and prevent another war.”

“Do you mean it? Truly mean it?” He asked and Mirage nodded. The Polyhexian smiled before standing up quickly with his servo extended between them with a datapad in his servo. “Then learn. This is the datapad I had given to your guardian Prowl on our people. Read all of it, and when you think you are ready come to the watering hole where the Nosorons refuel.”

Mirage took it before he saw that Jazz wasn’t leaving. His gaze followed where he assumed Jazz’s optics were looking at. “The necklace? But Hound gave it to me.”

“He gave it to you at the promise of you becoming his Inamorata. When and if you decide to go to the watering hole, I will return it to you.” Jazz explained with confidence. Mirage bit his lip with actual fear, and he didn’t know what exactly the real cause of his fear was. He didn’t know if it was the idea of losing his only form of confidence or losing the one and only gift he had ever gotten from a mech that wanted to impress him. The ex-noble reluctantly uncoiled the necklace and handed it to the Polyhexian. The Polyhexian smiled softly with a slight tilt of his helm as he touched the side of Mirage’s cheek. There were no words exchanged when Jazz left Mirage standing in the middle of his apartment without a trace.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mirage gets his modification chip installed and Hound and Pyra experience Jazz's wrath

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All information on mods, glossary, and members are in the first 3 chapters. :)

* * *

Ch. 4

Mirage didn’t tell anyone about Jazz’s visit or why he was even more determined than ever. He even started working more and longer groons to get more credits. The Iaconian had done his research just like he somewhat promised, though it was more like the visored somehow manipulated him into trading his necklace for the datapad. Mirage had read about how the clan all had naturally formed modifications that helped them adapt to their environment. He knew that if he was planning on going through with showing that he was wanting to make up for what happened, he was going to get a modification installed before going to wherever the Nosorons refueled from.

_Because of the lack of refineries, we gather energon crystals and melt it in a large cauldron that is open all solar cycle, until the freezing solstice which is then put into rations. We also do hunt various creatures and gather many foliage to all incorporate into ceremonial meals, medicinal purposes, or in place of goodies. The hunting parties rotate every third groon and take trackers to increase the chance of finding prey. It does take a couple solar cycles for systems to adjust to the new diet, but as long as you have energon to go along with whatever you eat then it will help._

_Every solar cycle the paimen, or herders, take the robochickens, zap ponies, and chronohorses to the grazing field before bringing them back before the first moon rises. When the sparklings are no longer fueling from their Carrier, they can be left under the care of the watchers while their creators return to taking up more of their duties. The watchers are responsible to help teach and protect the youth until they are old enough to attempt at the rite of passage. Once the younglings successfully complete the passage, one of the adults take one to personally train into what they believe fits their frame. Though you may see a warrior help train either the watchers or paimen for melee combat._

_As a warrior they help protect the clan from feral mechanimals or outlanders. They often are the ones hunting and gathering, as well as making sure no one gets too close to the camp. The head warrior is our subaltern, which is the equivalent to a second-in-command. He also leads most of the hunts while the Father leads the battles._

_The Father is the Sire figure for all of the clan, being the firm authority that protects the entire clan. He makes sure that everyone is safe, fueled, functioning, as well as doing their part to seeing that the clan survives. His first duty may be to the clan, but he will always make time for his Inamorata. He trains and grooms his first sparked son to take his place from the moment he is a second stage youngling. When handling clan business, he is addressed as Father, even by his mate._

_As an Inamorata, it is your duty to see the clan as your own creation. Be the compassionate side in times of need and when you believe it is needed, but also firm on any decisions you make if the clan disagrees. You also have to be there for your spark mate as you would even outside the clan. Just because you are the Inamorata, it does not mean that you will get a pass on helping with whatever looks like it needs getting done. The only times it is appropriate to avoid doing any hunting, foraging, or fighting are if you are sparked or the Läakäri strictly forbids it._

_And finally, the Läakäri is our clan’s version of a medic. He and his trainee live in a cabin that is slightly on the edge of camp, only because it lowers the risk of all of the clan getting any viruses and better help any injured recover if they are away from the excitable energy. When they require any materials or special ingredients, they will request to go with the next gatherers as they are more aware of what they need. Because of the increase of the outlanders coming into the wilds to explore, they also have brought viruses into our environment. Which means that many times they require more modern knowledge to better defend us from it._

After reading all of what each bot did, Mirage looked out the window with a thoughtful hum. “Sounds like they are more self-sufficient and organized than Iacon half the time. What would happen if the first sparked is a femme? Would she be the Inamorata?” He looked at his chronometer and quickly jumped on his ped. “Scrap, I hope he’s still in Iacon.”

Mirage quickly left his work while subspacing the datapad. He stepped onto the side of the road before transforming and took off for Iacon. ::Ratchet, it’s Mirage. Are you still in Iacon?::

::I’m just about to take the tram to Praxus. Why?:: The old medic said with the same grumble undertone.

::I need a mod implanted, before you ask I know it’s expensive and I have the credits. And I don’t trust any of the medics here to install it correctly. I do have the mod already.:: Mirage said as calm as he could because he knew that if showed too much excitement then Ratchet would ask him questions.

::Mirage why do… how did… you’re not going to stop asking me until I do, are you?:: The mech had been around the young mech long enough to know how stubborn and determined he got. When there was no response from him the medic sighed across the comlink. ::Fine, stop by the clinic tomorrow. What mod are you wanting installed?::

::It’s a physical mod.:: Mirage left it at that, as he wasn’t entirely sure what the mod would do once it was installed. The only ones that had mods installed into them were the operatives that the higher ranked lords had as well as racers. And from the research the mech could find on it, the modification chip was separated into three tiers, physical, molecular, and psychological. The actual mod that would occur would be absolutely random. He didn’t want tomorrow, but the mech wasn’t going to push his luck and left it at that. ::Thank you so much for doing this Ratchet, see you tomorrow.::

::You’re welcome?:: Ratchet sounded confused almost hesitant when he replied. With a plan set in motion with the mod, Mirage made his way home and did his routine before settling at the table with the datapad in front of him. He was entering the realm that he absolutely bombed in, relationships. Mirage subconsciously rubbed his wrist where the necklace once had been before he remembered where it was.

Hound was pacing around his room with his arms crossed. He was upset that Jazz had gone and did what he did, and now he believed Mirage had more of a reason to hate their people. When Jazz returned with a proud smile on his face and then told him and his sire what he did, the green mech pressed his lips tightly as he went to his room to compose himself. The sound of the long crystal strands in the doorway tinkling drew the mech’s attention. “I’m sorry for leaving like that, I was just thinking about the things that Mirage had said.”

“I know you are hurting Hound that’s why I went there.” Jazz walked into the room and led his adopted son over to the berth. “Mirage truly feels bad about what he did and is really wanting to try again. He wouldn’t admit this to me, because well many nobles hate admitting things, but he was almost in tears when I told him to hand me the necklace back.”

“Really? He’s kept it all this time? I thought he would have thrown it out or got rid of it as soon as we left.” Hound watched the visored mech pull the long necklace from his satchel and gently sat in his open servos. His digits curled around the thin wire with a heavy sigh. “What makes you so sure?”

“Call it intuition. Give him a few of solar cycles to figure himself out, and I’ll go bring him here after he has a bit of fun looking for the watering hole. Can’t just let him have the future Father so easily this time.” When Hound saw the wide grin on the Inamorata’s face he knew he was being playful. “Are you up for a bit of scouting with me?”

Hound’s field instantly perked when scouting was mentioned. He sat the necklace beside him on the berth before he rose to his peds. “That’s ridiculous to ask me. I’d never turn down a chance to out scout you.” The two mechs both laughed before heading out to get a head start before the nocturnal creatures onlined. Jazz had taught the mech how to scout and maneuver through the forest while blindfolded, only able to use his other senses to track down the Polyhexian. “What are we looking for this cycle?”

“A robochick managed to escape the pen.” Jazz explained with a chuckle. “I told Outback that we needed to fix the fences so there were less gaps, but he was _very_ adamant that the chicks weren’t small enough to fit through.”

“Sounds like Outback. He’s just proud of his work at raising those robochickens.” Hound sympathized as they walked through the thick forest. He lowered to the ground and touched the small tracks before lowering to get a scent off of the track. “Smells like our escapee. You think he went to the pasture?”

Jazz looked around for any more signs of the chick, “hmm maybe. Think we should head there?”

“I think that we should head that way. Only makes sense because of what’s there. Stick to the trees and we’ll be able to reach the pasture in a half a groon.” Hound suggested before they climbed one of the many nearby trees. The green mech knew that following the tracks would have been easier, but with how overgrown everything was it was going to take longer to find said tracks. “We really need to take machetes to the paths.”

“Yeah, I’ll have to let the paimen know to stomp the paths down. Getting any scents?” Jazz asked as they jumped from branch to branch. The Polyhexian kept a close optic on the other mech. “So, anything you want to talk about?”

Hound looked over his shoulder with a weirded-out look before jumping across again. “On?” His field and tone matched his facial expression.

“About mating, interfacing. You know that it’s impor-” Jazz started before Hound was quick to shut that down.

“Jazz! Why are you bringing that up now? We don’t even know if Mirage will even want to be a part of the clan yet. I can’t think about interfacing right now.” Hound said with his voice raising an octave.

“I know, but it’s still important to know that Cybertronians from the outlands are built differently to those from the clan. We, mainly Carriers, don’t have the quick absorption rate as Carriers from the clan so it may take a couple tries before a spark is formed. You know it took your Sire and I a few tri-”

The green mech crouched on the branch that they had stopped on. He covered his receptors with his face twisting in disgust. “I don’t want to know what you and my Sire have been doing. Can we focus on finding this stupid robochicken?”

The multicolored mech nodded, “yeah sorry just was trying to tell you to take things slow.” Jazz rubbed Hound’s shoulder with a smile.

“Could have just said that instead of me wanting to burn my memory banks after hearing how many times my creators fragged each other.” Hound’s face continued to contort into disgust. Jazz continued to laugh it off while the other was still not amused. “I think hear movement.”

“Now can I know why you wanted to install a mod? You're not planning on racing are you Mirage? You'll seriously burn yourself out if you do too much.” Ratchet asked as he closed up the ex-noble's chassis. The mech that was laying on the table watched data fly around his processor as it installed itself into his systems. “And for your information, I think you were a bit misled on the type of chip this was. It seems to be a molecular tier, but when I looked through it there was a strand of physical coding.”

_As long as I don't transform into a mechanimal, I don’t care. _Mirage nodded, “okay. I just do Ratchet. Here are your credits, thanks.” He said with a bit of attitude after transferring the credits and pushed himself into a sitting position. The medic was quick to put his servos on the other's frame. “I need to get home Ratchet.”

“Oh no you don't Mirage, not in your current condition. You need to stay here and recover for that data upgrade. You're uncle-" Ratchet started to say, but Mirage cut him off with a harsh glare. “Don't glare at me young mech, your uncle loves you very much.”

Mirage mockingly laugh, “ah yes cause nothing says ‘I love you nephew’ like kicking me to the farthest city on Cybertron. Feeling a _lot _of love on my end. I'm going home and resting; I wouldn't want to be _more _of a bother to the Lord Prime.”

“Mirage, you need to stay in the berth and recover. Trust me, and then after you can do whatever the slag you want.” Ratchet tried to keep Mirage in place for his sake and also for his own sake. “Do you really think you're a bother to Optimus?”

The white and blue mech crossed his arms as he reclined against the wall. “Well he refuses to talk to me. Just leave it Ratchet, I get it that I burned him because of the whole thing with Hound. He clearly could care less about what I do to myself.”

“Mirage, Optimus does care about you. He just was tired of your attitude. Sure, he may have gone too far, but you have to admit that you have matured a lot.” The old medic pointed out with a proud smack of his shoulder.

The ex-noble looked at him with a twinge of surprise in his optics. “Matured, are you saying I wasn’t before?” When he was answered with a silent optic ridge rising, Mirage knew that was his answer. “Right. I guess I was a bit immature most of my life. So, do you know how long until the mod _does_ activate?”

“It varies from bot to bot, but many of my colleagues say that a majority activate during moments of high stress. But regardless if that is true or not, don't put yourself into stressful situations.” Ratchet warned with a firm point. Mirage kept quiet as he nodded, and he wasn’t about to tell him what he was going to do once he got things situated. The mech was going to pay the next few meta-cycles worth of rent before leaving for the wild lands, and then pray to Primus that Hound would want to see his face.

“I’ll try to remember that. Have a good cycle Ratchet.” Mirage finally pushed himself out of the berth and made his way for the door leading to the hall. Ratchet went to stop him again, but the mech put his ped on his decision to go home. “I appreciate all you have done Ratchet, but I have plans early in the morning that I made prior and need as much recharge as possible.”

The medic crossed his arms with disapproval evident on his face. He followed the mech out to the entrance of the clinic. “If I get a comm about how much pain you're in, I don't want to hear it.”

“You won't.” Mirage waved his servo before leaving for his scrap of a home. Now, the white and blue mech had only a few minor things to put straight before going into the wilds. He had no intentions on telling anyone, well the twins would get a comm before he left, but he didn’t want to be talked out of his decision.

Deep in the forest, Hound was taking his younger siblings with Pyra Magna to help keep their seven brothers and sisters in order. Hound was the oldest followed by Magna and their younger siblings ranged from third stage younglings to first stage sparklings. All of which were carried by Jazz, leaving him the only one that was carried by his Carrier. “Hound, what are we doing today? Do we get to run through the acid fields!? Ooh, ooh or are we going to play in the oil pits!?”

The oldest shook his helm while trying to silence his excited sister behind laughs. “No, Nautica. We're going to go watch a wild pack of cyberwolves hunt, so we have to be very quiet.” He looked over his shoulder while adjusting a squirming mechling in his arms. “Beachcomber, calm down.”

“Play.” He whined slightly, but that was it. Hound didn’t pick favorites, but Beachcomber was definitely at the top of the list. The larger mech sat him on his shoulders in hopes it was enough entertainment for the little mech. The little white and blue mechling was as much of a wildlife lover as he was, and Hound was often given the duty of taking care of his mess whenever he decided to bring in tiny Amphiboids that still absolutely terrified Jazz.

“We'll play in a bit Beach, promise.” Pyra promised which meant now they _really _had to play sometime soon.

“Hound, Sire said we couldn’t go to the rust hills.” One of the older younglings revealed with that undertone of threatening to tell on her older brother.

The green mech groaned and put a servo on her purple shoulder. “Javelin, sister dear we aren't going to the rust hills.” He lied to her simply because the others had wanted to see the pack hunt just as bad as he did. Her single optic stared at him with a pout on her face, but she didn't saying anything more well until they arrived to orange-red hills where the herd was grazing with the pack of wild cyberwolves were stalking them. When they ducked out of view of the beasts, Javelin looked at her brother and told him she was going to tattle.

“No one likes a blabber mouth Jave.” The second oldest youngling was a yellow mech. “Hound, what about the outlanders? Didn't Subaltern say they were still around?”

“Don't worry Bee, I have a hologram up to hide us. Now shh, you can learn a lot about how to hunt from watching a predator hunt for its prey. Watch how the leader of the hunting party scouts out for the weaker ones. Who knows why they choose weak prey?” Hound looked at the quietly watching mechlings and femmelings.

Nautica rose her servo and spoke. “Because they make easier catches. That’s why Carrier and Sire tell us to eat all of our energon, so we get big and strong.”

The older two both nodded with slight chuckles. “That's right squirt.” Pyra Magna gave her little sister a playful pat on the top of her helm. Everyone was enjoying themselves and watching the pack chase around one of the older prey, but that changed when one of the wolves got shot and that scared all of the animals away. The younglings and sparklings all screamed before Hound and Pyra Magna pulled them into their frames. Hound held on to the siblings in his arms as outlanders walked out with cocky laughs. “Those bastards. Hound, we need to go now and tell Father. Come on. Hound, come on.”

The green mech wanted oh so deeply to kill them just like they did to the poor creature. He nodded and followed his sister with his siblings all crying. They never cried during hunting practice or when the hunting parties returned and taken apart in front of them. The future Father believed it was the sound of their blasters that terrified them.

“Hound, are the Outlanders coming after us?” Beachcomber asked his big brother as they all stopped near a cluster of trees.

“They shouldn’t. Come on we'll head back home.” He instructed before leading the group home. When they got back, he noticed that one sister was gone and he panicked thinking he left her in the forest, but then his panic turned to pure fear when he saw a pissed Jazz walking straight for him. _Snitch._

“You took them to the hills!? How could you be so utterly irresponsible Hound!? We banned them from there because of the outlanders!” Jazz's rare burst of anger always got everyone's attention.

“There was a hunt going on there, I didn’t see any camps there.” Hound tried to explain, but he could tell that Jazz wasn't going to be simply swayed.

The Polyhexian shook his helm as he jabbed a digit into his chest. “Do you think you and Pyra could take on their defense!? Protect a swarm of younglings that haven’t even begun training?! Don’t _ever_ pull this kind of slag again, do you hear me Hound?” The green mech nodded rapidly before the Inamorata spun on his heel and walked off while scooping one if his younger brothers up in his arms.

Hound covered his optics with a groan. He felt he got off easy with his adopted Carrier, and he knew his Sire was going to be the aggressor. The green mech was joined by his sister who matched his expression. “He chew you out too?”

“Ohhh yeah. Preparing for Sire's spout too?” She looked at him as he nodded solemnly.

“He is going to skin us alive and hang our frames.” Hound exaggerated behind a dreaded groan. And just like they predicted, their Sire took them off to a secluded part of camp and all of the clan heard nothing for a long time until an explosion sent shivers through them. Their Father's voice boomed so loud that the avians that had been recharging in the surrounding trees, were now flying away. After the shouting, the mech and femme scurried up to the top where their family resided.

They apologized to Jazz for endangering their brothers and sisters as well as themselves. Jazz of course forgave them with the underling promise that if they ever did it again he would kick them so hard they would end up on the other side of the planet. Now they all knew it was physically impossible, but that wouldn’t stop Jazz from trying.

And when Hound and Pyra Magna thought that they were in the clear, Jazz delivered the final blow. “Oh, before I forget, Paiman Outback is expecting you both bright and early tomorrow to clean the mechanimal pens.”

They went to protest, but the firm servo in the air got them to stop and bow their helms in shame. “Yes Inamorata.”

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The first 10(ish) chapters will be slow moving before a major time skip :)


	5. chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Day one with clan

Ch. 5

Mirage did it, he left a lengthy datapad note for the twins and gave a small holo-vid to Prowl to give to his aunt. He didn’t tell his tutor/friend why he was doing any of this, and he insisted in letting him go with him, but Mirage said he needed to do this alone. “Energon, thermal blanket, and map.” Mirage had everything laid out on the counter in front of him and placed them in his subspace before heading for the door. _Wait!_ He quickly ran for his room and grabbed the gold box with a heavy sigh. “I’m not leaving you two here.”

Once the box was placed in his subspace, Mirage sent the credits to management with a note saying he was ‘going off planet for a while'. He knew they didn’t care as long as they got their credits. The white and blue mech drove off for the wilds, well he drove until he got to the very distinct line between the city and the wild land. The plant life were too close together to efficiently drive through, so he was forced to transform again.

“There's no going back now Mirage. You’ve lived in Uraya long enough to get over your dislike against dirt. Just go in, find this watering hole and you’ll find Jazz.” Mirage ex-vented hard before pushing his weight off one ped, and then backed away with a burst of fear. _How will he even find me? How will he know I arrived? _The ex-noble shook his helm vigorously in hopes it would shake off his ridiculous fear. He took his first step through the forest line, going straight until the thick foliage became sparse.

Mirage could feel the slight breeze blowing the leaves just light enough to mimic the sound of chimes. Other than that, the forest was eerily quiet which caused him to be scared again, and with one last look over his shoulder he continued going straight. The mech stopped dead in his tracks when he heard a baritone roar far in the distance. “Is that them? Primus, I should have paid attention to the biology lesson.” Mirage followed after the sound, slightly steering off course.

It was slowly becoming night by the time Mirage found a watering hole, he didn’t know if it was the one Jazz was referring to but the mech figured that the Paimen took their mechanimals to whichever one was safest. He couldn’t see anything in the thick darkness and resorted to turning his low beams on to see just enough to slowly drain his reserves. The night life was coming online, and the silent forest was soon filled with noises.

He looked up with a tired ex-vent and it turned into an awestruck gasp. The mech saw only a small cluster of stars twinkling in the sky, but it was still amazing. He was now wondering why they would build so many buildings to cover the stars. Sure, Mirage knew that they were balls of gas and fire but from here it was a beautiful sight to see. The sound of leaves moving brought Mirage out of his haze.

Mirage looked around with his fear spiking, “hello?” _Slaggit Mirage, shut up if it's a predator don’t attract it more. _Mirage was praying his mod would activate sooner rather than later, but it had been seven solar cycles and still nothing from the mod he had implanted. The mech stood up when the sounds got closer, and with little thought he turned his thoughts off hoping that whatever it was couldn’t see him. When the sound didn’t cease Mirage resorted to plan B and took off as fast as he could.

He looked over his shoulder and saw something fly past his face, and he yelped before running faster. Mirage didn’t stop to think about what was chasing him, all he could do was hope that whatever was following him would stop chasing him. Mirage dove into some bushes and prayed silently to Primus he couldn’t be seen. The mech vented softly as peeked through the leaves before freezing when he felt something slowly climbing up his arm from the bush. A servo-sized arachnid climbed up to his elbow before stopping, and Mirage exposed his location from the energon-curdling scream as he flailed even further back.

From his flailing Mirage triggered a noose trap to tightly wrap a vines around his ankle. He was shot up into the air with a grunt until he was spinning around slowly. There was the infamous sound of gears clicking and Mirage knew who this was. Sadly, before Mirage could try and explain himself, something hit him on the side of the helm, and he black out.

Hound was helping his Sire with fixing a barrier when there was the excitable cheering coming from the dugout. He looked up at his Sire with confusion, “what's going on?”

“I’m not sure, we'll finish this in the morning. Come.” Ultra Magnus sat the tools down and led his son to where the fire was burning. He saw his mate walking to the edge before a surge of panic was evident by how fast he slid down to the hunters. The two mechs hurried themselves; Jazz was calling for Triage while scolding the hunters. Hound tried to see what was going on, but his Sire used his giant arm to block his view. “Hound, go check on your siblings.”

“But Sire, what's going on?” The forest green mech continued to try and see, but he did manage to catch a flash of white and blue. _Is that? _He tried to push past his Sire's frame, but just didn’t have the strength.

“Hound, do not argue with me. Go now.” Ultra Magnus gave that tone as the Father and not his Sire. He sighed in disappointment but complied as he made his way to his creators' level.

Mirage onlined with a groan as his sensors were registering pain in his left ankle struts as well as a major helm ache. His vision was clearing up to see a thickly framed red and blue mech with red, white, and black dots on the top half of his face. In a panic Mirage shouted and tried to sit up, but the jerking motion on his legs caused his left leg to surge with pain. The mech waved his servos and started clicking at Mirage, but he couldn't understand a word be was saying.

“He says to not move yet or you'll injury your ankle again.” Mirage looked to see Jazz sitting on a cot opposite of him. “You're lucky I managed to get the hunters off you, they thought you were the outlanders that have been making themselves right at home.”

“Do I want to know what they were going to do me had you not shown up?” Mirage asked as he watched the mech examine the leg carefully. _Is he the Läakäri or the assistant?_

“They would have let my mate handle you. Just remember they aren’t going to trust you so easily Mirage, you'll have to learn fast or the wilds will eat you alive.” Jazz warned but had a friendly smile on his face. He looked at the mech that was wrapping cloth around the ankle. “Triage, let me know when he's able to walk.”

Triage looked at the Polyhexian and bowed his helm. “Yes Inamorata.” Mirage didn’t understand anything except he was able to translate ‘Inamorata’. The Läakäri looked back at Mirage he clicked as he extended his arm out and pointed at the mech. The mech copied him hesitantly, he watched him scan each limb thoroughly before moving away briefly. “Triage.”

“I’m sorry?” Mirage looked up at the Mech with confusion. He had heard him, but there was no context in what he had said. The mech put a servo to his chest plate and repeated himself. “Oh, your name is Triage.”

The Läakäri took out the hardline cable from his wrist and did the same to Mirage. Mirage knew what he was doing, Ratchet used the hardline cables to transfer code deep anti-virus files or to check the health of the sparkling. He saw a warning popup in his HUD marked as ‘unknown'. The Iaconian mech looked at Triage wearily. The mech nodded as if sensing his uneasiness. When Mirage still didn't do anything, Triage gestured between the both of them before doing the same with their lips.

_Oh! It's a language pack. _It took a bit for Mirage to decipher what he was trying to say, but when he figured it out the mech accepted the transfer. After the file was downloaded, Triage decided to test to see if the transfer was successful. “Can you understand me?”

Mirage waved his servo in the air, “sort of.” When he heard what he had sounded like his servo went to his neck in shock. “I sound so-"

“Wild? Don’t worry you'll get used to it. This will make communicating with each other easier. My name is Läakäri Triage.” He reintroduced himself while holding out a shallow bowl. Mirage understood only a bit of what he had said, but he had gotten the gist of what had been said. “It's just energon with a few additives to help with that leg.”

“Oh, thank you.” Mirage took the bowl and drank it nervously. He looked around and saw plants hanging from the ceiling, cots lined the wall, and there were two open window on the side walls. “You don’t stay in here do you?”

Triage shook his helm and pointed at the huge mountain, “we sometimes recharge near the base, but that is only if no one injures them self.” Soon the door opened to reveal a black mech with red bio lights running through his frame. His optics matched his bio lights and his face was hidden behind a mask. The new mech’s arms were full of plants and the satchel slung over his shoulder was bulging. “This is my trainee, Flatline.”

“Flatline?” Mirage repeated with uncertainty before looking up at the dark mech. He nodded silently while setting the plants on a table before looking at the two mechs. _Not much of a talker is he?_ It was a while of sitting before Triage commed for Jazz’s return. When the Polyhexian returned it was now early in the solar cycle that only one sun lit up the sky. He yawned into his servo. “Morning already? Does time always feel this fast?”

Jazz was to say the least startled to have heard Mirage speak their language. Triage let the Inamorata know what he did and the mech understood. The Polyhexian helped the other mech stand up with a smile on his face. “No faster than in the outlands. Come on, Father wishes to speak to you before he allows you anywhere near our future Father.”

_He sounds like my aunt when uncle is in business mode._ Mirage nodded nervously with Jazz taking his servo. The Iaconian was just allowing the Polyhexian to drag him through the open camp, there were so many mechs and femmes watching him and the youth that wanted to get a closer look were being guided away by a small white and gold femme and a black and red Seeker mech. _Are they scared?_ Mirage looked around as he followed Jazz to the base of the mountain.

“The mountain is lit up by solar panels near the top. We only have it bright enough to see at night. We make everything ourselves and yes the berths are soft mainly because we do have fliers and Praxians in our clan, and we’re called savages.” Jazz laughed towards the end to lighten the mood. Mirage awkwardly chuckled, unsure of how to react. “CatSCAN, one of our paimen made that same joke with me when he took me around our old campsite.”

Mirage went to say something, but a white and blue mechling and a purple femmeling ran down the long spiral walk path they had been walking on. “Carrier, Nautica took my friend from me. His wing is broken, and I was trying to make him better.”

“Carrier said no pets in the house!” The femme Nautica jerked her arms back. In her servos was a tiny avian that was squawking the entire time.

_Carrier? _Mirage looked at the younglings and then at Jazz who held his servos out for his daughter to give the avian. She handed it to him, and Jazz turned around and gave it to his son. “Beachcomber, next time if you see an injured animal take one of the Paimen to the animal. And Nautica, you don’t take stuff from your brother.”

“Yes Carrier.” They both answered softly. Beachcomber looked up at Mirage and then his Carrier. “Who's he?”

“This is Mirage, he's going to be staying with us for a while. Now go outside and play.” He gave them kisses on the top of their helms. Mirage felt a twinge of sadness, having barely remembering his Carrier doing the same thing to him.

The two younglings ran past them. “You have very beautiful younglings.”

“Sucking up to the Inamorata are we Mirage?” Jazz looked beside him with a cheeky grin and Mirage tensed before stumbling over his words. The Polyhexian clapped him over the back with another laugh. “Teasing Mirage, I’m teasing. Thank you, the other younglings are with their older sister.”

_Is Jazz always this impish?_ The ex-noble tried to calm himself as they started reaching the top of the mountain. While Jazz spoke a bit more about everything, Mirage had noticed that there weren’t actual lockable doors on any of the rooms, but crystal curtains that were thick enough to block anyone from just seeing the inside. They made it to the top where giggles came from behind the blue curtain.

Jazz parted the crystals and gestured for Mirage to walk in first. “Wait in here, I’ll go get him.” The Polyhexian told the mech before leaving Mirage alone. The mech walked around the main room, looking at everything silently. He had noted how big the doorways were which he thought was odd until he saw a huge blue and white mech follow Jazz out of the room he had gone in. Mirage couldn’t help but look up with his optics widening in disbelief.

_And I thought uncle was big._ The Father gestured for the table that was in the middle of the room. They sat down around it before he spoke. “My Inamorata said that you had wished to try and form a union with my son again, but give me a reason as to why I should welcome you?”

Mirage couldn’t give over the fact how big this mech was, and then compared to Jazz. _How has he not been… no focus Mirage. _He cleared his processor and answered. “I messed up and I know this. I was arrogant and I know I shouldn't have said the things I had said. Hound had been willing to do everything to impress me, but I was too blind and caught up in myself to give him a chance. My uncle wanted to fight your people for the hunters that came into the wilds, but I told him that we had to honor our part of the treaty I had failed to uphold.”

While Mirage was talking, Jazz had left to check on the sparkling that started crying again. The Father looked down at the ex-noble with cold optics. “Do you think us weak?”

“What?! No, no, no that's not it at all. I figured you were tired of losing your people just as much as my uncle was tired of losing his friends. Jazz told me how he came to live with your clan. I didn’t know that my people took your loved ones and treated them as objects. The thought of that makes me sick.” Mirage looked down at his servos. His voice had grown soft towards the end. He wasn’t aware that Ultra Magnus was reading his field for any fallacy.

The wilds leader remained silent a bit longer before making a decision. “You will stay and learn our way of life for a deca-cycle on the promise you return to your uncle and demand these mechs be taken out of our land. And any of my people that may live still be returned to me.”

Mirage looked up with his mouth slightly open. He was slightly shocked from the deal, but he nodded in agreement. The mechs were rejoined by Jazz holding a first stage one white mechling. “So, Mirage, what sort of mod did you get?” The Polyhexian remained friendly as he joined them at the table. “Oh, this little cutie is First Aid. Aid can you say hi?”

“Bye.” The mechling said with a cheery smile in his optics. Mirage and Jazz both shared a chuckle while Ultra Magnus remained stoic.

“I do not know yet. It hasn’t activated, but I was told it was a molecular tier with a strand of physical.” Mirage explained before the sound of crystals chiming behind them got them all to look at who had entered. Hound froze when he stepped into the main room. He was covered in mud and energon was splattered up his arms and across his chest. The two mechs stared at each other before Hound turned tail for his room. _Is he hurt?_

The two leaders looked at each other before decided to intervene. He stood up and nodded at the entryway, “come on, we still have to show you the rest of the camp. You came at the perfect time too!”

“Why is that?” Mirage asked as he followed the Carrier out of the mountain. He saw how every adult had the crystals hanging from their necks or wrapped around a part of their body, and only a few of the younger generation had them. “Can I ask about the crystals?”

Jazz smiled in approval, “sure! We don’t get our first crystal until we pass the coming of age test, and then depending on where you are placed, you’ll get a crystal to match, and another once we're mated. I've got a crystal from my mate, Ultra Magnus, and then one for each of my creations.” He explained while pointing to each respective geode that hung from his neck.

Hearing the purpose of the rocks it got Mirage to subconsciously rub at his wrist with guilt. _I didn’t deserve that gift. _He looked around and watched younglings run past while laughing. There were mechs near a hole in the fence line, they stopped whispering amongst each other and looked at Mirage. The Iaconian had noticed how they had all different colored optics; red, blue, gold, green, orange, and yellow.

“Hope you don’t mind dirt, Outlander!” An ape-like mech shouted as the four other mechs chuckled at the malicious joke. Jazz's visors darkened and they all turned away quickly.

“Don’t pay them any mind.” Jazz led Mirage to a pen that was nearly empty except for a zap pony that looked very large in its midsection. There was a red feline mech leaning against the simple pen. “CatSCAN, this is Mirage. Mirage this is Paiman CatSCAN. How is she?”

The mech held his servo out to which Mirage took firmly. “Strong grip. She should be having the foal soon. She's been circling this this since last night.”

“How many paimen are there?” Mirage asked the red mech curiously.

“Just myself and Outback. Waiting till Beachcomber does his coming of age ceremony and then we're taking him under our wing. Mechling certainly has a way with the beasts.” CatSCAN buttered up Jazz, who was now purring proudly.

First Aid reached for Mirage and whined softly. Mirage panicked and started waving his servos in front of him rapidly when Jazz offered to let him hold the sparkling. “Oh no thank you, I’m no good with sparklings.”

“Oh nonsense. He won't break.” Jazz teased while placing the sparkling in the startled mech's arms. First Aid giggled with his helm nuzzling Mirage's chest plate. “You were stressed. Aid has a very sensitive EM field.”

“I suppose I was a bit stressed. I do not have much experience with the youth.” Mirage wasn’t about to admit that he was absolutely terrified of the fact that Hound was possibly hurt. He also didn’t want to anger every single bot by being disrespectful. _Now I know how Hound must've felt. Primus I'm a terrible mech._

“Well you're doing good so far. Alright, come on let’s go show you where we get our energon.” Jazz led the mech away to a field that had crystals growing in clusters. “We gather the crystals once they turn into a deep purple color, and then we throw them into the pot before melting it down. On _really_ rare occasions we’ll go look for more energon crystals in caves, but that’s only during the freezing solstice because that’s when it becomes important to ration it.”

“Purple? Isn’t that almost highgrade levels?” Mirage looked at him while they walked almost side by side through the small field.

“Purple is just matured pure energon. To make high grade, you put additives in the energon to get that normal effect. Pure energon is like the same level of energon that was served at your uncle’s.” The visored mech explained while setting First Aid down on the soft metal path. “Come along First Aid.”

The two adults walked slowly with the sparkling crawling ahead of them. Mirage absorbed the information before they stopped at the edge of the brief field. The sparkling continued playing in the soft metal while giggling innocently. The Iaconian saw a large tree in the open at the top of a hill. “What’s that?”

“The clan calls it ‘The way to Primus’, but big tree is simple enough. We use it for the coming of age ceremonies as well as bonding ceremonies.” Jazz teased at first before giving a serious answer. When they stopped First Aid picked up two fallen crystals and started smacking them against each other. The Carrier was quick to grab the crystals from his tiny servos. First Aid whimpered while his Carrier explained why it was bad to do that.

“What exactly happens at this ‘coming of age ceremony’? Did you have do it?” Mirage asked while the Polyhexian sat down and patted the spot next to him. He shifted uncomfortably before kneeling beside him.

“The younglings get into their third stage frames, the Father and Inamorata give a speech, and then they climb to the very top of the tree and bring back one of the iron fruits that grow up there. After they bring it back then they take it to the delta darya to activate the oxidation process, and then finally plant it somewhere in the forest.” Jazz explained while the sparkling rolled around while laughing. “Have to? Naw, I did it to rub in all of their faces that a blind mech could do everything they could do.” His visors flashed in the ex-noble’s direction.

Mirage looked at the Polyhexian in shock, “you’re blind? I’m sorry.”

The Polyhexian waved it off with a laugh. He pulled the sparkling into his lap and started rubbing the face mask clean of the shavings. “Hunters apparently don’t appreciate satire, and poof can’t see. But Triage gave me my visors so I can see pretty decently, probably even better than before.”

“How can you still want to go to the cities after what they did to you?” Mirage didn’t understand how Jazz could still want to be associated to civilization.

“Medical stuff that we can’t get here and also because my creators are still there. I visit them on occasion.” Jazz said casually with a smile on his face. “And Mirage, don’t let Hound’s reaction get to you. He’ll get over it in a bit.”

Mirage nodded, “I know this may sound naïve to say, but it feels really peaceful here.”

“It can be, but it is just about as dangerous. All the murderers and thieves are replaced by scraplet hives and cheeky apeoids. Just give the clan a chance to get a feel of you, okay?” Jazz looked over at the other mech while First Aid crawled up his frame carefully.

Back at the camp, Ultra Magnus walked into Hound's room to see his son vigorously scrubbing the mud off of him. “Are you injured?” he gestured at the energon that was now mixed in with the mud.

“No, I went hunting with Trailbreaker and SharpEdge. So, Mirage really came? Is he okay?” Hound kept his back turned slightly. He didn’t want his Sire to see his face even though he knew his field was being read.

“He did and he is fine. This Mirage seemed to feel bad for how things went the last time you two had met. He will be staying a deca-cycle before returning to his people to speak to his uncle about us. I will have him staying with Triage and Flatline for his stay.” Ultra Magnus didn’t talk to the Läakäri or his assistant about this, but he just wanted a reaction from his eldest creation.

The dark green mech's helm shot up before he swiftly spun around. “What? Why are you sending him back? Why are you making him stay with the Läakäri?”

“To see if he really wishes to stay or not. And where do you plan on letting him recharge? We will not be making another room simply for it to go empty, and Pyra will not be moving in with Trailbreaker until they bond.” The Magnus crossed his arms.

Hound shifted in his spot with a small frown. “He can stay in here and I’ll stay with the little ones.”

“Okay then.” The Father turned and left after the brief conversation with his son. Their relationship wasn't as open or tightknit as his relationship with Jazz was. It was even hard for Jazz to get his mate to crack a smile, but that didn’t stop him from loving him.

Hound turned back to the bucket that was sitting on a carved out shelf in the wall. The room had a large hole carved out to allow natural light in, so it was easy for the forest green mech to find all of the dirt on his frame. Once he was properly clean, he placed the crystals back around his neck and threw the satchel across his chest. _I’ll just put the markings on later tonight._ He looked over at his berth where Hellhound was laying quietly.

“Come on you big lug, Triage wants you stretching.” Hound gave his friend a gently pat on the hind leg. The future Father was absolutely grateful to still have Hellhound with them in the land of the functioning. He knew the mechanoid was getting old and would be leaving them sometime, but he didn't want his last moment with him to be stupid choice Hound made.

Hellhound groaned as he climbed off the berth. Hound chuckled while petting him roughly. The two walked slowly down to the rest of the camp. Everyone they passed greeted their future Father and Hound greeted back with a friendly smile. A lot of the older clan members that knew his Carrier often made jokes saying that Ultra Magnus didn’t play a part in creating him because the two mechs were polar opposites, and during his teen years Hound would often throw that in his Sire's face. Eventually his Sire got tired of it and _showed _him that night, and Hound swore to never doubt his origins. He also assumed it was his Sire's form of a sick joke.

“Hey, Apelinq, have you seen Jazz?” Hound walked over to the ape that was still in his same spot with the other mechs.

“Saw him take the outlander to the field. Give him a solar cycle ‘fore he goes crawling back to the outlands.” Apelinq laughed and was joined in by the others except for Hound, who was walking off with an annoyed huff.

Hound followed his olfactory array to where he saw Jazz reclined with Mirage sitting beside him. The mech put his scouting skills to the test and snuck close to the two mechs and was getting really close before Jazz called him out.

“I certainly hope you do not plan on jumping either of us.” The Polyhexian said with a calm tone while the Iaconian looked at him in confusion. Hellhound walked around to Jazz’s side and was greeted by the visored mech petting his bottom jaw. Hound groaned and walked around to face the mechs.

“Just testing your senses.” Hound knelt in front of the two mechs with his optics locking with the Inamorata for a klik before darting to Mirage, and then back at Jazz.

The Polyhexian caught onto his adopted son’s silent request, and swiftly stood up with First Aid in his arms. “Well look at the time, it would seem that it’s getting about time for me to get Beachcomber and Nautica ready for tonight.” He started making his way back to find his creations.

Hound took Jazz’s spot but kept his servos in his lap. Hellhound forced himself between the two awkward mechs. “Are you… feeling okay? I’m sorry if any of the others offended you.”

“I am… as fine as I could be. And any verbal offenses your clan says to me, I’ve heard worse from Iacon. Hound, I’m sorry for what I said about you, I shouldn’t have said those things.” Mirage quickly turned to face the hunter green mech who looked at him just as fast. Their optics locked just like they did back in the stall. _Wow were his optics always this color?_ He snapped out of his haze.

“I was hurt by the words you had said, but Jazz always says to give everyone a second chance. If they say anything mean, please tell me.” Hound suggested before looking up at the sky awkwardly. He sniffed the air and looked over at Mirage, and moved to the other side of the mech. “Oh don’t be sad Mirage, I can understand you not wanting to give up the life style you knew. It was… difficult to remove all of the crystals, because-”

“Because each one had meaning to you.” Mirage finished for the mech. The wilds mech nodded as he rubbed the necklace around his neck. The Iaconian rubbed his wrist with a silent sigh. “I assume you are aware of the deal I made with your Sire?”

Hound accidently let a snicker escape his lips, “do you always talk like this? He wasn’t afraid to burst my bubble when he said you would only be staying for a deca-cycle, but that means I have to show you everything. You’re able to stay with my family, in my room.”

“What? Where will you be staying?” Mirage frowned.

“I’ll be with my siblings.” Hound said with a friendly tone before jumping to his peds. He held his servo out with the goofy smile still on his face. “Come on Raj, I want to introduce you to all of siblings.” The green mech pulled him up the second their servos locked. Hellhound rose to his peds and walked ahead of the two mechs.

The white and blue mech looked at the green mech silently before looking ahead. He was nervous to say something arrogant, but he felt like Hound wasn’t going to judge him which comforted him a bit. “How many siblings do you have?”

“Four younger brothers and three younger sisters.” Hound looked over at Mirage with a curious expression. “Do you have you?”

Mirage shook his helm, “no. I was fairly young when I lost my creators; and my aunt and uncle haven’t had any creations yet either.”

“Oh, I’m sorry to hear that. Well if you want, I have plenty of siblings to keep you occupied.” Hound teased Mirage while leading him back to the camp. The green mech asked Mirage so many questions, some personal while others were about his culture. The mech answered everything as plainly as possible, but he had to remember that Hound was smarter than he was always told. The two mechs were stopped by a small pack of younglings that excitedly tackled the green mech's legs. “Oof.”

“Frér!” They hadn’t even noticed Mirage watching quietly until one of them happened to give Hellhound affection. Bumblebee looked at his brother. “Is this the outlander Beach told us about?” Their blue optics all locked onto Mirage.

The future Father chuckled and pulled the younglings off of him. “Speaking of my siblings, everyone this is Mirage. Mirage this is Javelin, Bumblebee, Swerve, and Beachcomber.” As he was introducing each of his younger siblings, Pyra Magna walked over with Trailbreaker beside her. “Pyra.”

Hound's warning tone got her to throw her arms in the air in offense. “I didn’t even say anything!”

“I grew up around you, I know how you work. Be nice to him.” The mech said with a glare and his sister sighed behind a groan. Hound looked at Mirage with a small servo gesture at the couple. “Mirage, this is my sister Pyra Magna and this is Subaltern Trailbreaker.”

Trailbreaker nodded in the shorter mech's direction. “Don't expect the clan to welcome you with open arms. The clan _never_ forgets _ever_.” He huffed before leading Pyra away. Hound sighed with his helm dropping in embarrassment.

“I’m sorry about that Raj. Usually Trailbreaker is the voice of reason. Bee, go take everyone to Carrier and get ready for tonight.” Hound told his guest; he wasn’t sure if Mirage was even interested in being his mate, so he wasn’t going to risk pressuring him into mating like last time. When his siblings ran off to get ready, Hound looked over to see Mirage staring at him with a look of bemusement. “What?”

“Nothing, it’s just… you’ve called me that name ‘Raj’ twice now. No one’s ever giving me a nickname before.” The Iaconian shook his helm with a small smile on his lips. Hound heated up slightly, he didn’t know if it was the smile or the fact he got caught calling him Raj. After a bit of uncomfortable silence, Mirage cleared his voice box and looked towards where Hound’s siblings ran off. “You certainly don’t get bored with them around. Am I the only one that’s-”

Hound shook his helm with an uncomfortable chuckle, “oh you’re not the only one, but I would like to not think about them doing it. Bad enough I have to smell it.” He shivered in disgust which got Mirage to laugh softly. “Is it common for your people not to openly express themselves?”

“Oh, no that’s not it. Nobles tend to be… stiff and full of themselves, last time I openly expressed myself was when my creators were around. After they passed, I didn’t think there was much reason to be happy with anything but material things.” Mirage spoke honestly as they walked back inside the cave. Hound nodded in a bit of understanding of where he was coming from. The mechs made it back to find Jazz painting on Beachcomber’s face.

“Comber, dear, hold still. You two are back already, I figured I wouldn’t find either of you until the ceremony. Nautica, Bumblebee come here!” Jazz called for the two other younglings while he ran the two yellow painted digits underneath the white and blue mech’s cheek plates.

“I thought… maybe you could use the help getting everyone ready?” Hound hinted to which the Polyhexian caught on and had them get Bumblebee ready while he did Nautica and Beachcomber. “So, Beachcomber, Nautica, and Bumblebee are three of… eight second stage younglings that are going to be in the coming of age ceremony. Trailbreaker’s sister, Warrior SharpEdge’s twins, Flatline’s son, and CatSCAN’s brother are also participating.”

Mirage listened to Hound while he went over to a cupboard that bunch of shallow bowls with paint staining the sides. He grabbed a bowl that had black paint inside; it looked like clay until the green mech added water to it to make a paint consistency. “Are they triplets? There are a lot colors and frame-types in your siblings.”

“Well blue and red make purple, but the other colors is just coding same with frame. They aren’t, they just were sparked close together. Nautica is the oldest and Bee is the youngest.” Hound explained as he painted on stripes down the yellow chest and then a small circle under each optic. Bumblebee looked at Mirage with a friendly smile. “Arms out. Want to help Raj?”

The green mech looked over at the mech that was looking closely at the paint with a silent stare. Mirage refocused with a nervous smile, “I’ve barely gotten used to painting straight lines on myself, I don’t want to mess up. How do make the paint?”

“Minerals that we get from the rest of the wilderness. Here, I’ll help you, take two digits and get just enough paint to coat them.” Hound explained as he did it with his own digits. Mirage copied the other mech and followed his lead with their digits going down the short pair of arms, they reached the back of Bumblebee’s servos before making a circle that had stopped just short of connecting. The Polyhexian turned around and Hound dipped his whole servo in the bowl with Mirage doing the same, and they pressed their painted servos on his shoulder blades. “See, you’re a natural. Can I do you?”

Mirage’s optics widened while Jazz snickered at the poor choice of words, and Hound caught on with his servos waving in front of him frantically. “That’s not what I meant at all. I, Primus, I meant painting you for the ceremony! Ugh, Primus.” Hound groaned into his clean servo in absolute distraught of his phrasing.

The Iaconian tilted his helm after he put Hound’s painted servo on his chest. “Only if you tell me what it means.” The Inamorata looked at the two and smiled at how natural they talked, albeit a bit awkward, but natural, nonetheless. The future Father smiled sheepishly before nodding agreement to the deal.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mirage's dialect between his Towers accent and his new wild accent is very distinguishable. In the Towers his voice think of his G1 voice, but in the wilds think of his RID 2001 voice.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mirage tries to eat like a wild mech

Ch. 6

Hound had been excited to help Jazz get Mirage ready, but the Polyhexian kicked the mech out and even went as far as to purposefully put Nautica and Bumblebee ‘in charge’ of keeping their brother out. The future Father flared his olfactory sensors before heading out to take his mind off of wanting to strangle Jazz for forcing him out. While on his little walk his Sire decided to join him.

“Jazz has quite the liking to that little outlander. Which means he's got potential.” Ultra Magnus looked down at his eldest creation before said son snorted at the comment. “Am I wrong?”

Hound shook his helm, “no, it's just… Jazz is going to _really _enjoy hearing you say that he was right. You’ve got more to say about Raj, don't you?” His sign rose an optical ridge at the nickname. “Oh, it just sorta happened, but I like it.”

“Well just remember that you can’t spoil the spoiled or he'll never learn value in living. Which is why I’m putting you in charge of teaching him all of the skills he'll need.” Magnus told him before there were excited shouts and screams. “It would appear Trailbreaker and the others brought back something for tonight. Are your siblings ready?”

The green mech nodded, “we got the three that are participating ready before Jazz kicked me out. Aid and Beach seem to like Raj.”

“First Aid likes everyone, and Beachcomber is just as bad when it comes to judgement of character.” Ultra Magnus said stoically before they both stopped. He put one of his large servos on his son's shoulder when he sensed his sadness. “Hound, all I am saying is that you can’t get too attached to a mech that may or may not remain here. If he can't uphold his promise, then we'll have to leave our home to avoid him finding us again.”

The dark green mech nodded with a heavy ex-vent. “Sire, I believe in him. Even if I have to give up every chance to scout or taking Beachcomber to the sulfur fields in order to teach Mirage how to hunt or find his way through the forest, then I will. I can feel it in my spark that Mirage is so much more.”

“Well as long as you are aware that you are responsible for the mech.” The Father reminded the other.

Mirage was watching Jazz prep the paint for him. He wondered why the Inamorata kicked Hound out, especially when it was the green mech that offered to paint him. Jazz had gotten purple and then added to the black that Hound used on Bumblebee. “Was there a reason you kicked Hound out?”

“We're going to surprise him. Our paint actually lasts a lot longer than what is used in the cities, and we avoid any glossy wax jobs because it will scare mechanimals away.” Jazz explained as he held the bowl with the black paint in one servo, and then started drawing an outline of a sideways triangle on Mirage's chest plate.

“Jazz, what is with the satchels? I’ve been meaning to ask. Do they not have subspaces?” Mirage asked while he watched the Polyhexian draw thin lines with the tips of his digits on top of the triangle.

Before the Polyhexian could answer, Bumblebee nudged himself into the conversation. “Subspaces use up energon and during the cold season they freeze up. The satchels don’t. First Aid and I are the only ones that got that from Carrier. Do you have one?”

“Yeah, I guess I never realized that using my subspace used up fuel. If the paimen plan on taking Beachcomber when he does his coming of age ceremony, then what about you two?” The ex-noble looked at the two younglings that were watching their Carrier.

“We don’t know.” Nautica shrugged with little care.

Bumblebee saw the confusion in his big brother's friend's face. “Beachcomber is the only one that knows because he's been really good with the mechanimals since we were little. We don’t get to know.”

“That makes sense.” Mirage nodded after thinking about it a bit more. Jazz finally finished the black and filled in the outlines with the purple. “What is your modification chip, Jazz?”

“Molecular with a bit of physical. I can produce sound waves for the tips of my digits. Don’t worry, yours will activate when your spark feels like it _needs_ it.” Jazz looked at his creations with a smile. “You three go get Aid.”

They all got the hint and retreated from the room. Mirage watched the Polyhexian put the bowls away before wiping his servos with the damp cloth that was sitting on his leg. “Okay, I need to know. Why did you give me another chance? Everyone else hates me because I hurt Hound and I’m from the city. Primus, _I _wouldn't give me a second chance after what I did.”

“Mirage, I believe that deep down you are a generous and caring mech. It took me a whole generation for me to gain respect from the others. I had to prove to them that I was just as much of a member of this clan as they were. Don’t give up in yourself before you’ve given yourself a chance to prove it. Who knows, you may surprise yourself.” Jazz smiled with his servos resting on his arms. “Now, let's go blow Hound's processor with your new look.”

The Inamorata grabbed his creations, shepherding all of them outside; getting the three older younglings went to join the other participants at Triage's cabin. The suns were now setting, but there was a bit of light to help the Iaconian see some of the clan members build a bonfire. He saw Hound's sister, Pyra, decorated in paint and stood beside Trailbreaker. The outlander took note how they were gathered in smaller groups and those groups had matching colored markings. Mirage didn’t have to look far to see Ultra Magnus standing off to the side with Hound.

The green mech was scanning every group in hopes to find Mirage among everyone. He caught sight of Jazz standing next to the white and blue mech. His jaw dropped as his optics grew when he watched the two walk closer. Mirage held an arm to his side as he looked away with a bit of embarrassment. Jazz laughed and closed his adopted son's mouth when he seem to have been frozen in shock.

“Aren't you going to say something Hound?” Jazz hinted at the mech that still had yet to say anything. Hound shook his helm vigorously and cleared his voice box a few times.

“Raj, you look amazing!” Hound said honestly. Mirage locked optics with the mech across him. They went back to silently staring until Hound found his pipes once more. “You look like you really belong.”

Mirage shrank down with his face plates heating up. He gave a small smile as he spoke. “Thank you, but Jazz should be getting the compliments he did the work.” The ex-noble looked at the smiling Polyhexian who just waved them off.

“Nonsense, ready to have your first meal?” Jazz asked him. He honestly forgot that they incorporated other things besides energon in their diet. The mech nodded, “remember what the datapad said?”

The mech nodded, “drink energon with everything until my systems get used to it.” He could feel the other mech's optics boring into his very spark. _Does he really like this?_

“Perfect! And _we _have to get ready for the younglings when they get to the tree. Come on Magsy.” Jazz took his mate's servo and ‘dragged' the hulking form behind him, leaving the two mechs awkwardly standing next to each other.

Hound looked out of the corner of his optic and saw Mirage look at the different groups. He could smell the confusion coming from him before he could feel it in his field. “We only separate like this during this ceremony. It helps the younglings figure out who calls them. Subaltern and everyone with him are warriors, Triage and Flatline will join after they upgraded the younglings, the paimen, and then the watchers. I would actually go with my Sire over by the warriors. Jazz is kind of a bit of everything, but he usually stays with the watchers.”

“How do you know what group you belong to? You enjoy mechanimals, why aren’t you a Paimen?” Mirage asked while they walked slightly away from the others.

“A bunch of different things; personality, size, attributes, modification, and transformation. So, I guess a few things really. I do enjoy being around the wildlife, but with my modification and my strength I’m better suited as a warrior.” Hound explained before quickly grabbing Mirage's servo, getting him to look at him in surprise. “You're scared, don’t be Raj. I won’t let anything happen to you.”

Mirage stared at him with his nerves getting to him again. He looked down with a shaky ex-vent, but he didn’t let go of the servo. “I’ve never said this to anyone before because I never believed them, but I trust you.”

“That’s all I can ask for.” Hound smiled before sniffing the air and his smile grew. “Come on, they finished their upgrades.”

The two hurried back to the rest of the clan just as Triage and Flatline led all of the newly upgraded third stage younglings. All of them were slightly larger than they were before. They all stood in front of their Father and Inamorata with their arms relaxing by their sides. Mirage noted how Nautica started looking more femme-like and her purple was even brighter than before. He also saw that Bumblebee had a slightly more predominate chest plate, but still the shortest of the bunch. Beachcomber looked very relaxed in just about every way possible, he was still taller than his brother, but he wasn’t going to be a giant like their Sire. Now that Mirage thought about it none of Ultra Magnus’s were his size, not even Hound was close to his height.

“As a part of our tradition of adulthood, those participating in the ceremony will follow the Inamorata to the Tree of Primus and retrieve one of its seed pods and take it to the Delta Darya. You will submerge it into the water before returning the pod to the ground.” Ultra Magnus explained before going onto the warnings. “There will be no helping or sabotaging each other, it is night so be careful of predators, and you will be watched by members of the clan as you complete your mission.”

Jazz looked up at his mate with a smile before looking at the younglings that were getting antsy. “You may use your mods once and remember you must learn how to work with nature. If you are all ready, come along.”

Mirage leaned in close to Hound and started whispering. “What are your siblings modifications?”

“Pyra can alter the gravity around her, Nautica can travel at light speed, Beachcomber has a way with nature, Bumblebee can shoot non-lethal stingers, First Aid is so field sensitive that he can feel them even if you're closed off, Swerve has sensors in his servos and can tell you what every material is made out of, Javelin can see the future… sort of, it's a bit unpredictable.” Hound explained as he led Mirage to the outskirts of the energon field so they could watch the younglings climb the large tree. “Javelin has another deci-vorn before her ceremony, Swerve has his in about a meta-cycle, and Aid has a _long _time before he even can participate.”

Mirage thought back to his uncle's manor to when Hound used a hologram. “You’re modification is hologram making?” Hound looked at the mech with a proud smile and firm nod of the helm.

“Sure is. Just watch out for Sire when he uses his mod, he told me once that he leveled an entire field during the wars against your people.” Hound warned but Mirage could see that the green mech was impressed by his Sire.

“You are kidding right?” The mech looked at the other with a shocked chuckle. Hound shook his helm and pointed to the large stacks on his Sire's shoulders.

“There are hidden hydraulics that formed when his mod activated and they are so powerful that when he uses full strength in a punch, it can obliterate anyone. But, don’t worry I’ve only heard him ever doing that once in his life time.” The future Father said casually while Mirage grew terrified at the thought of angering Ultra Magnus so much to the point of being killed.

Mirage watched Beachcomber and a feline looking mech jumped down at the same time before taking off into the forest. He was going to watch the whole ceremony so he could do it to impress the whole clan. The two went after the two mechs that were already going there. “So, what's this delta?”

“It used to be an actual delta that was connected to river further out, but the plant life took over and blocked it off and formed more of a pond. It's mostly hydrochloric acid infused water now, but it helps with removing rust and melting the tree pods shell.” While Hound explained he pushed down some of the overgrowth. “The reason we do this, is because as we grow so should the forest. It protects and fuels us by giving us its resources, so too replace what we take we plant a new tree. Just like when we kill an animal to use it fuel, frame, or whatever purposes we need we return its sacrifice by mourning.”

“You know a lot of medics I’ve seen had very similar colors to First Aid. Wait, I mean Läakäri.” Mirage had told himself, leading up to him leaving Uraya, that he would use _only _their terminology. “Sorry.”

Hound laughed with a shake of his helm. “Raj, ya don’t have to apologize to me. It's just a habit, Jazz has a really bad habit of sporadic singing when he's really excited. So be warned.” This time they both laughed softly while they watched the rest of the younglings scurry off. “Maybe I can teach you some more words? After the ceremony obviously.”

Mirage nodded without hesitation before he watched the younglings walk into the unnaturally clear pond. The reddish-brown pods started fizzling and the water soon turned orange from all of the rust. Beachcomber didn’t move from the pond for several kliks before pulling out the large pod. He finally took off running the opposite direction that the others did. “Where’s he going?”

“I’m not sure, come on the others are okay.” Hound pulled Mirage behind him as they ran for the green mech’s brother. The ex-noble was already getting tired from the running. The green mech stopped in their pursuit to let the other catch his intake. “I guess tomorrow we’ll work on your stamina. Come on, I’ll carry you.”

After another intake Mirage shook his helm, “no, I can do it. I’ve been treated like a sensitive sparkling all my life, I need to get used to actually doing _things_.” He waved a servo in the air, which got a chuckle from Hound. “What?”

“There’s nothing wrong with asking for help, Raj. Come on, he isn’t much farther.” Hound started in a slow jog and kept a close optic on the mech behind him. He moved fallen over trees and low hanging branches out of Mirage’s way. They found Beachcomber all by himself in a very small open field that had little use for the clan. “What is that mech doing? This field is a dead zone.”

“What do you mean? Looks like a normal field to me.” Mirage frowned in minor confusion.

Hound picked up some of the loose ground and placed it in Mirage’s servo. “Feel how cold it is? This entire field doesn’t change in temperature, even if both suns shined directly over it during the melting point. So, we never bother using it for anything.” The mechs got distracted by a loud screech that sent fear through their systems for two entirely different reasons. “Oh, no. Stay here.”

“Oh no? What do you mean ‘oh no’?” Mirage lowered his voice before going completely silent when a large avian, its wingspan was at least two of his uncle, and it landed in front of the unwavering youngling. Hound pulled his dagger from his satchel and started sneaking over to get his brother away from the large bird.

Beachcomber saw his brother and Mirage in his peripheral vision. “Hound, no stay away from my friend. Mr. Technohawk, can you help me find a good place to bury this?” The Technohawk threw its beak in the air and screeched again with its large wings stirring up the loose ground. “No, no it’s okay they won’t hurt you. I want to make this place special for your hatchlings.”

_Is this Beachcomber’s mod? How can he be so calm around that beast?_ Mirage watched how the youngling held the pod in front of the creature’s face. The technohawk lowered its beak to the pod before using its beak to gently dig into the ground. Hound hesitantly lowered his blade and watched the large bird release a small burst of fire into the hole it made. Beachcomber smiled gratefully and gently placed the pod in the burnt hole before burying it. “And it’ll grow like you say? Thank you for helping me.”

The Technohawk screeched before taking off which was all Hound needed to rush over to his brother. “Beachcomber, are you nuts? I know that your mod has worked for the Nosorons, but a Technohawk is too big for you right now. What if it resisted you?”

“She wasn’t going to hurt me; I helped her hatchling’s wing heal.” Beachcomber looked at Mirage as he climbed out of the bushes. He giggled and ran over to the white and blue mech and scooped something off the mech’s frame. “Woah, a diamondback arachnid! Hound, look what Mirage found!”

Mirage froze when he saw the small arachnid in the mech’s blue servos. Hound knelt down beside the mech as he took the creature from his brother. “It’s very nice frér, but you need to finish your ceremony.” He took the arachnid from the cupped servos. Beachcomber flashed a smile before taking off to finish his ceremony. The green mech returned to Mirage’s side and saw how squeamish he looked. “It’s okay Raj, it won’t hurt you.”

“I hate bugs.” Mirage shivered in disgust as the arachnid continued to crawl around in Hound’s servo. Hound took one of Mirage’s servos and carefully transferred the arachnid into the mech’s servo. The ex-noble whined in disgust as it crawled up his arm slowly. “Hound, I _really_ hate this.”

Hound took the arachnid off of the mech and sat it on a nearby plant. “There, it's off. Don’t worry, I hate fishoids up river. Come on, we should get back to camp.”

“Why were you scared of that umm… it got lost in translation.” Mirage gave a sheepish chuckle. He felt oddly safe around Hound; as if he wasn’t at risk of being dragged off by something bigger than him.

“Technohawk. That was a femme, the mechs are twice as big. And they are extremely territorial of their nests. ‘Comber can understand mechanimals, but it only works only calm ones and only if they want to listen.” Hound explained while stomping down the path. “I’ll have to tell the paimen to stomp down a path if that pod grows.”

They rejoined everyone back at the large bonfire where the younglings lined up while the different groups whispered among themselves. CatSCAN pointed at Beachcomber, to nobodies surprise, and the youngling hurried over to his side. Trailbreaker pointed at Nautica and CatSCAN's creation. Jazz smiled and pointed at Bumblebee. The three younglings ran for their sides. Mirage saw Triage whisper into Flatline’s audio.

“Father, I request two neophytes.” Flatline spoke in a deep baritone voice, which surprised Mirage for some reason. Ultra Magnus gestured for the black mech to continue. “I would like to have First Aid and Swerve as my trainees when they both come of age.”

“That sounds appropriate. Are there any objections to this request?” Ultra Magnus looked around in the silent crowd, but no one said anything which gave the Father his answer. “Then I will allow your request.” Triage and Flatline both bowed their helms respectfully.

Mirage leaned into Hound’s receptor, “what’s going on?”

“It’s basically an early… choosing for a youngling that is too young to participate in the coming of age ceremony. It’s what happened with Beachcomber.” Hound leaned in closes before touching Mirage’s arm. “I really like the paint. It brings out your optics, especially the bits of turquoise in them.” The Iaconian heated up more and looked away with a sheepish smile.

“I didn’t think anyone saw that deeply into my optics. Are you always a smooth talker?” Mirage chuckled out of embarrassment.

Hound shook his helm before watching the rest of the younglings get picked by other adults. Trailbreaker and Apelinq made a few shouts to get everyone’s attention. “Hey, the meal is ready. And just a warning the energon we make is probably twice as strong as the stuff that was at your family’s… hmmm… home?”

Mirage nodded, “home is correct. And I have been consuming nothing but low grade since I left Iacon, so I should take it easy. What exactly do you eat from the mechanimals you kill?”

“Trust me, I was told by some of the others that Jazz tried to avoid eating anything and he felt terrible. Jazz told me that some of the stuff we have reminded him of this thing called ‘frozen cubes’. I don’t know what that is, but that’s what he said.” Hound shrugged, but Mirage knew exactly what the mech was referring too. The green mech took Mirage’s servo loosely, missing the embarrassed smile forming on the Iaconian’s lips. “If I’m smelling it correctly, it’s Cardassian. It’s a species of fish from upriver, it’ll be the last time we can catch any before they go for the mountain.”

The mech looked at the other before briefly looking at a massive silver and blue tinted fishoid was skewered over the bonfire. If his optics could open wider they would because he was baffled how any of these bots could carry something that massive. He slowly looked at the dark green mech, “why’s that? How in the world did anyone catch, let alone carry, _that_ here?”

Hound threw his helm back in laughter, finding the outlander’s naivety adorable in a way. He shook his helm before pointing to the Nosorons’ pen. “We have traps to catch them and then we have a few of the Nosorons drag it back here. They stay near the banks from when they hatch until they reach adulthood, and then swim up to the mountain for breeding. That big guy won’t be getting any action anymore.”

“Are your people the only ones that live out here?” Mirage remembered as a youth being told to avoid the forest because of the clan for many reasons, but he had begun wondering what all his world got wrong.

The future father sat in his usual spot that was on the left of his Sire. He patted the empty spot next to him and Mirage awkwardly sat beside Hound. “Watcher Scylla told me a story about how there used to be different clans in the different parts of what you call ‘the wilds’. Once up in the mountains, waters, underground, and then ours but a war between all four clans almost killed all of us. She said that the mountain clan were forced to leave their home and adjust to live in the Sea of Rust.”

“Are you telling fairytales again Hound?” The two mechs both shot their helms up to see Pyra Magna and Trailbreaker joining them.

“There’s nothing wrong with telling them. And they’re better than whatever you tell our brothers and sisters.” Hound teased his sister. The green mech smelt the spike of uneasiness coming from Mirage which concerned him. He was about to ask the mech what was wrong, but his Sire was about to give the premeal speech. “If you need help, let me know.”

Mirage snapped out of his thoughts just as Hound whispered into his audio receptor. He nodded as Ultra Magnus held a bowl in the air. “In honor of our ancestors, we pray to Primus for grant us the honor of this catch. As Father of our people, I also am thankful to the bringer of life and death, Unicron, for allowing us to use this creature’s energon to keep us going. We will not let anything go to waste as everything in life as a purpose.” Mirage saw that everyone was eerily quiet, even First Aid made no sound. After the silence, Ultra Magnus locked optics with Mirage and the mech froze as the mech walked towards him. “As a guest on my eldest son’s behalf, I welcome you into _my clan_.”

The larger mech extended the bowl to Mirage. He nervously took it, but he didn't know if he was supposed to drink it or not. Mirage looked at Hound for help, and he subtly darted his gaze to his Sire. ::The clan gives and takes. Take a sip, thank him, and give it back.:: Hound said through a short burst comlink wave.

Mirage did what Hound said and took the smallest of sips, and the second the purple liquid touched his glossa he could feel why they said to be careful. He held the bowl up at Ultra Magnus. “Thank you.”

When the father took the bowl back, Mirage glanced at Hound's sister and saw an approving smile on her lips. He relaxed slightly knowing he did something right to get a reaction like that. Jazz walked over to what was supposed to be their meal and pointed to a small section before one of the younglings, that participated in the ceremony, cut into it. Mirage watched how everyone talked among each other with how Sunstreaker and Sideswipe would. Between the younglings and Jazz, the Cardassian was equally passed around to everyone. Energon was in a smaller bowl compared to the one Ultra Magnus had, but Mirage assumed it was because of his size.

The mech looked at the square cutout fishoid, seeing small traces of oil pooling around it. Hound chuckled when he saw the facial expression appear on Mirage. “Put a little bit in your mouth and chase it with the energon. That's what Nautica does when we have fishoid.”

“We never had to actually eat anything like this before.” Mirage reminded before pinching off a small piece and put it in his mouth. His processor screamed, telling him to spit it out, but it last only for a klik until he swallowed it. Once it hit his tanks, Mirage checked his HUD to see his tanks gradually rise. His mineral reserves had spiked from the bit he had swallowed.

“So, what do you think?” Hound looked at the silent mech. He had stopped eating his own meal when he had yet to hear a response from the mech.

The outlander shook his helm and looked at Hound with a surprised expression. “Wow, it's honestly not bad.” He picked up the bowl of energon that was in front of him and took a small sip but started coughing into his energon. Hound took the bowl with his empty servo on Mirage's back. After the white and blue mech got control of his airways, he tried to hide his embarrassment for the coughing fit. “I’m okay.”

“Don’t get too embarrassed, Jazz chugged the first time. Mech speed all over himself.” Trailbreaker gestured at the Polyhexian that was helping his younger creations eat. “’Course no one told him that it was going to be too strong for him.”

_This is so embarrassing; I want to hide._ Mirage nodded silently. “Jazz said that he was a musician back in the city, does he still play?”

“Yeah, he usually does after First Aid finishes his energon. None of them inherited his talents.” The black mech said after drinking his energon in one go. “Hound, I hope you know I’m going to work Javelin hard.”

Hound chuckled with a digit lazily pointing at him. “Just expect her to snitch on you. If she's willing to snitch on Pyra and I, she'll do it to you.”

“Speaking of the little tattle.” Pyra joked as their sister walked in front of the four bots. “What's up Jave?”

The femme crossed her arms with a rev of her engines. The three clan members knew what it meant, but Mirage was ignorant to what was going on. Sensing his guest's confusion, Hound explained. “Remember when I said that Javelin’s mod worked sometimes? She sees the future, but she sees eight different versions and then goes mute for a whole day.”

“So, because she's not talking, she saw the future, and no one can know what happened until she can speak?” Mirage looked at them and Javelin nodded solemnly. “Do they always come true?”

“You’re here aren’t you?” Pyra Magna grumbled into her bowl. Hound glared daggers at his sister just as Trailbreaker elbowed the femme’s side. Mirage sighed heavily, but he wasn’t about to make a fool of himself in front of them. “I’m just being honest. We tried telling you that this would happen, but would you listen?”

She stood up quickly and went for the cave. Mirage didn’t say anything as he stared at the ground across from him. Trailbreaker didn’t trust the mech, but he knew his future bonded had crossed the line. He was going to talk to her after the ceremony was done. Hound reached for Mirage, but he stopped and ex-vented hard as guilt washed over him. _Thanks for ruining the mood Pyra._ Jazz made his way in front of the bon fire with a barrel shaped items in his arms. The Polyhexian started beating the tops of them in a rhythmic beat which got the cyberwolves and astrofoxes started howling.

Mirage looked at the only mech that would possibly understand him, and how happy he looked with them. Hound stood up and held his servo out to Mirage with a smile on his face. “Come on, let’s dance.”

“Oh no, no, no, I can’t dance at all.” He waved his servos in front of him with nerves getting him. Hound shrugged with a carefree smile and took Javelin and Nautica to the same area that their Carrier was still playing the makeshift drum. Hound started dancing with his sisters and a big smile on his face.

Bumblebee hopped into Hound’s spot beside Mirage. “Hey, what’s with the long face?”

“It’s nothing. So, Jazz is making you a watcher?” He looked at the yellow Polyhexian with a curious expression. He figured with his modification bumblebee would make a better warrior if anything.

“Carrier says I’m better with sparklings than any of my siblings, but if something tried to hurt any of the sparklings then I can use my mod to protect them. Mirage, can I ask you something?” He looked over at Mirage with suspiciously innocent look in his optics. The Iaconian nodded, “do you like my brother?”

Mirage locked his optics on the green mech that was spinning his sisters around as they laughed. “I think he is a good mech. He must be a great older brother to have around.”

“Oh, the best! He takes us to watch the wild packs when they're close to the camp. Taught me how to hide from the outlanders. You're not going to go back to the outland are you Mirage?” The yellow mech frowned at the thought of this mech leaving the clan.

_Oh, he's so innocent, how do I explain this nicely?_ Mirage's lack of experience with younglings made it hard for him to explain in a way that wouldn’t cause him to cry. “Well I will have to go back and talk to my uncle, but after that it's up to your Sire.”

“I want you to stay, I like you. Hound likes you too, you were all he talked about when him and Carrier got back.” Bumblebee giggled when he saw how fast Mirage's face heated up. Hound stopped dancing when he caught the whiff of Mirage. Their optics locked briefly before they looked away with embarrassed smiles.

The celebration was soon wrapping up and Mirage was standing near the base of the mountain looking up at the sky. He had his arms folded behind his back, wondering if the clan gave the stars names as well. Hound watched how Mirage distanced himself from the clan, and the green mech couldn’t understand why. He pulled Jazz to the side with an actual whine escaping him.

“Hound, what's wrong?” Jazz had never heard the mech make that sound in his entire life, and that worried him.

“It's Raj, he doesn’t want to interact with the clan. And Pyra said some things that hurt his feelings. I want him to like it here, but he's not going to want too, I can feel it in my wiring. What if it happens all over again?” Hound bowed his helm in a bit of shame for what his sister had said.

Jazz took his son's servos and gave them a supportive squeeze. “Hound, you are the one of sweetest mechs I know. Give him time to adjust. Don’t lose hope so fast. And you leave your sister to me, okay?” Hound took a deep intake before nodding in understanding. The Polyhexian smiled before placing a reassuring kiss on his forehelm. “Now go be with him.”

After a bit of a mental self-esteem boost, Hound walked over to Mirage and gestured at the spot on his left. “This spot taken?” He gave a pathetic chuckle. Mirage shook his helm with a gesture that he could join him. “We haven’t given them names.”

“Why not?” The ex-noble looked over at Hound before looking back at what stars he could see from where they were. “What would you name them?”

The future Father hummed in thought. “I don't know. There are so many to name. Do your people have names for them?”

“I don’t see it from here, but there's this constellation called Orion that my uncle was named after before he became a Lord Prime.” Mirage didn’t want to look at Hound in hopes of keeping up his walls that he had built. “You look like you were enjoying yourself.”

The green mech looked at all of the adults start drinking even more. It was a common occurrence that the older clan members got carried away when it came to celebrations. “I’m not much of a dancer, but it’s something _they_ enjoy. Is there something that you want to do tomorrow?”

“Jazz told me about the pasture? Said that it was beautiful this time of the year.” Mirage wasn’t afraid to express other emotions, but it was hard to get his field and voice match his words. He figured he said something right when a big grin grew on Hound's face.

“Then after energon it'll be our first stop. We could even see if Triage needs anything.” Hound said with excitement in his field before he retreated back. “Raj, I just… I wanted to say sorry for what Pyra said. It was totally uncalled for and you didn’t deserve it.”

Mirage shook his helm, “I am used to it. Doesn’t bother me anymore.” He repeated the lie to himself since he was a youngling. The outlander looked at the mildly worried mech when he said nothing. “Hound, really, I’m okay. When you have, had, status like I did then it's like second nature.”

“It sounds like your people's versions of Fathers don’t take their responsibilities serious. Do they not help each other better the outlands?” Hound was interested in learning about Mirage and Jazz's world even if none of it made sense to him.

“Not unless it benefits their own needs. The only ones that I’ve met that cared about the population were my creators and my aunt and uncle. I was… not one of the good ones. It's a wonder we survived so long in the war.” The white and blue mech bowed his helm as he thought of his creators.

Hound could sense his sadness and placed a servo on his shoulder. “I did not have the honor of meeting your creators, but I bet they are proud of you regardless of the decisions you made.”

Mirage was silently contemplating what Hound said before smiling softly. “Thank you, for that, it means a lot. I hate to be a downer, but I’m feeling a bit tired and my ankle struts are killing me.”

“Oh okay. Come on, I’ll show you my room. I’ll try to keep my brothers and sisters quiet while you rest.” Hound assured as he led Mirage up to their level. He pushed the crystal curtain to the side when they got to his room. Hellhound lifted his helm up when they awkwardly entered the room. “It's not as big as the ones that were at your uncle's, but the view is nice. Come on boy, you need to go hunt. Night Raj.”

Mirage watched the green mech leave with the Cyberwolf trekking behind him. It wasn’t until after they were completely out of sight that he found his voice box. “Good night, Hound.” He spoke softly.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hound trains Mirage on self-defense. Day 2/3 with clan

* * *

Ch. 7

“H-Hound, it's too dark. I can't see _anything_.” Mirage whispered in the dark before he rammed his ped into something. He screamed behind firmly sealed lips. Hound had onlined him so early in the morning that the first sun hadn’t even peaked the horizon. The green mech had told the ex-noble to keep his lights off as his siblings were all recharging in the main room.

The future Father took ahold if his servo and pulled him close. “We're almost out. You can turn your low beams if you want.” The dark green mech didn't need his lights to make his way around his creators' home thanks to nothing really changing and to his senses. Mirage turned on his low beams when he got the okay; he felt instantly better knowing where he was going. “Don't worry, you'll get used to low visibility.”

“I highly doubt that. Where are we going?” The mech saw that they were getting closer to being outside. He looked up at Hound with a waiting expression in his optics.

“Well I was thinking of taking you around_ our _territory. We don’t… own the entire forest, I think that's what you say. We have a large territory to fuel the clan and to let the mechanimals, but the rest of it is full of creatures too dangerous for us to scout any areas. It's also kept our camp hidden when everyone thinks we live throughout the entire forest.” Hound informed Mirage as they walked past the pen where the zap ponies were.

“What if anyone stumbled upon the camp? What would you do?” Mirage had gotten a taste of their defensive skills, but he felt like he got off lightly.

Hound gave the mech a gentle squeeze of his servo. “If they mean harm then we would take care of them. If it was a simple accident, then Jazz would escort them back to the city while we moved camp. Luckily it hasn’t happened since we moved during the wars.”

The pair went over to a large vat with a nozzle at the front of it. The container looked to be made out of either glass or a clear plastic. Inside was the same liquid that Mirage had consumed last night. “Can I ask what you do around here to help? You said that you're a warrior, and I know they protect the clan, but what do you do personally?”

“Well I do a lot of things. I usually go with hunting parties and help track prey, help watch the younglings or with the mechanimals, gather stuff for Triage and Flatline, or sometimes I’ll just fix whatever needs repairs." Hound pulled out two shallow bowls from the satchel that he had put in there prior to onlining Mirage. He handed on to the mech before filling both half way with only a couple drops spilling. “Did you want to help out?”

The mech looked at the bowl as he bit the inside of his bottom lip. “I… unfortunately do not have any useful skills. Not unless economics and politics are somehow useful.” Mirage spoke with a cold tone before sipping the energon. Hound frowned slightly at the answer he was given. He didn’t understand why he would act one way one moment and then another way when put on the spot. The outlander saw the wilds mech looking at him and he lowered the bowl from his mouth. “Yes?”

“Why do you do that?” Hound finally asked after a few moments of contemplating if he should ask the mech or not.

“Do what?” The mech turned all the way to face the forest green mech.

“You act like a mech that is enjoying himself until someone asks you a question, then you act cold. I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable; I was just trying to understand your question.” Hound offered an apology to the ex-noble.

Mirage looked down with a couple of his digits carefully rubbing the bottom of the bowl. “I apologize for that Hound. I am not used to being so open with myself. You, like I’ve said before, you are the first mech that I’ve opened so freely too. Not even Prowl or the twins got me to speak this way.” His gaze went back up to the vat.

Hound had to force himself to not sneer and rev his engines in anger at the mention of the twins. It was their fault for the two of them not bonding. “I like this you. You’re honest, albeit sometimes brutally honest, but I like your honesty. Why don’t we finish our energon and then go for that walk?” He flashed a smile at the slightly smaller mech. Mirage heated up at the compliment and quickly hid his face with his bowl going to his mouth.

_Why does your honesty make me feel like this way?_ The Iaconian nodded after he finished the energon and Hound placed it in his bag. Hound knocked back his energon and put it away. He took Mirage’s servo with a smile on his face. The pair started leaving the camp, passing a mech and femme pair that were standing in the entrance. “We rotate guards every three groons, when we’ve gotten some fighting moves in you, you could try if you’d like.”

The guards snorted with snickers which was answered with Hound’s helm whipping in their direction. When they saw the dark glare from the future Father, they stopped laughing and stood at attention. Mirage didn’t know that the mech had an essence of Ratchet in him. _Maybe in another life they had known each other._ Hound kept holding onto the white and blue mech’s servo in silence. The tension coming from the dark green mech made Mirage uncomfortable. They continued to say nothing as they went further into the forest. “Hound, don’t be mad at them. I’m an outlander and I had hurt you; they have every right to dislike me.”

“That’s just it Raj, you being an outlander shouldn’t affect them. Jazz is from where you come from and all of my siblings are part outlander. What if we had our own creations, would they treat them the same way?” They stopped as Hound ranted and threw a servo in the direction of the camp in the distance. Their optics grew when they realized what Hound just said. His face heated up as he looked away in embarrassment. “Come on, the pasture is just over this hill.”

Mirage was speechless as he watched Hound walk ahead of him. _Did he just say ‘our’? _The Iaconian jogged up beside him and looked into his downcast optics. “Creations huh? You seem to have skipped quite a few bases before creations come into the picture.” Hound’s optics looked ahead and then looked into Mirage’s in astonishment. The mech pulled away and slipped back into his mask. “I believe we should worry about teaching me how to survive.”

“Right.” Hound dove right into telling Mirage which plants were edible and which ones weren’t. He told him a funny story about how him and a couple warriors were watching outlanders experiment in trying to figure out which ones were edible, and they all found out the hard way. Mirage thought it was kind of dark, but he suppose it would be amusing to see fools all eat something with no knowledge about it. “I remember the first time my Sire took me fishing, Primus I couldn’t catch anything the entire time, but it was the most fun I had in a long time.”

The white mech felt a twinge of sadness at the thought of his creators. “My Sire was often busy with meetings when I was younger, but he did always bring me energon suckers. He even would bring my Carrier a bouquet of purple crystals too.” He felt his spark tighten at the memories he hadn’t thought of for nearly a vorn. The mech shook his helm as he cleared his voice box to avoid the oncoming tears.

“He sounded like he really loved you. After my Carrier… was taken from us, he became closed off, at least that’s what everyone told me. Triage told me that after Jazz became my Sire’s sparkmate, he brought out his old self a bit. But, I was always told that not even a new love could replace the first spark your spark joined with. And I guess Jazz knows this, but he still manages to love him.” Hound smiled slightly before glancing at the sky before an idea came to mind. His smile turned into a grin and he got excited. “Come on, I was going to save this for the end of the trip, but I have someone I want you to meet.”

Mirage didn’t have time to react before Hound lifted him into his arms and started sprinting. “H-Hound what are you doing! Put me down!” He held onto his neck with his face buried into the green mech’s chest plate. Hound didn’t stop running until he came to where the large tree stood. The mech felt Mirage shaking in his arms and he couldn’t help but kind of laugh at his reaction. Hound slowly helped Mirage down and he was thanked by being smacked on the chest with a frustrated shout. “Are you crazy!? What if you dropped me!?”

“I wouldn’t have dropped you, Raj. Have a bit of faith in me.” Hound chuckled before stepping closer to the base of the tree’s base. Mirage crossed his arms with a pout. “Mirage, I want you to meet my Carrier.”

“Uh… Hound, I hate to break it to you, but this is a tree.” Mirage was answered with a shake of the helm.

“My Carrier planted this when she went through her ceremony. I come here when I’m needing someone to talk to. And… I just thought maybe you would like someone to talk to too.” Hound rubbed the back of his helm with an embarrassed chuckle.

Mirage looked up at the large cyber-organic plant that blew gently in the wind. He reached out to touch it, but stopped and looked over at Hound for permission, the mech nodded with a smile. Mirage touched it with care and the pair stood in silence before he looked at Hound with a questioning look in his optics. “How do you know this is your Carrier’s?”

“When our seed has grown large enough we engrave our name into it.” Hound gently moved the servo to the side to show the small engrave glyph. “Her name was Greenlight. She had a sister named Redlight.”

Mirage stared at the glyph before his helm shot up and he looked at Hound with a confused expression. Hound started laughing hard which gave the other mech enough incentive to join in. “A jokester I see. You are not funny, I thought you were serious.”

“My Carrier’s name really was Greenlight, but she didn’t have a sister. She did have a brother; Triage actually is my uncle.” Hound said honestly before stepping back and held his servo out for him with a big smile. “Come on, I still have to take you on that walk. And you can teach me more words.”

Mirage rolled his optics with a smile as he took the servo. “We will start with introductions.” The ex-noble dramatically folded his arms behind his back as he playfully acted like a snobbish noble giving a speech. “When meeting someone new you say ‘Hello, my name is Hound.’ If you are seeing an acquaintance then you would simply say hello.” He said in whatever the language that Hound’s people spoke before repeating it in Iaconian.

Hound nodded firmly before attempting at saying it himself. “H-H… hmmm... H-Hello my… name is… Hound.”

“Good start. Let’s try it again slowly this time.” Mirage helped Hound sound out each word while Hound helped him maneuver through the forest. The ex-noble was impressed by how fast a learner Hound was, though he figured it was important to be a fast learner if you were going to live out in the wilds. The mechs came to a stop when the forest suddenly broke into a large open field with thigh-length microblade grass and scattered cyber-organic plants. Mirage gasped loudly when the rising suns hit at just the right angle, causing the field to sparkle. Hound looked at the mech beside him, feeling his spark swell in pride to see such an expression on Mirage’s face. “Hound, this is… wow.”

Hound guided Mirage through, taking their time to avoid getting too scratched up from the blades. “This is the pasture where the Paimen take the herds. So, when someone talks about the pasture, this is what they are talking about. We sometimes pick the grass and use it to make weapons or bait.” They stopped in the middle of the field, facing each other with their fields relaxed. Neither of them wanted to make a move, both in fear of ruining the moment, but Hound reached into his satchel and pulled out his dagger. He held the handle in Mirage’s direction. “I want you to have it until we can have one made for you. Have you ever used a weapon before?”

“Hound, do you _remember _where I came from? I had others do the fighting for me.” Mirage didn’t take the small blade from the other’s servos because he didn’t trust himself not to end up losing digits. Hound shook his helm and placed it in the blue servo. “If I cut either of us, I’m blaming you for being a terrible teacher.”

The green mech busted up laughing with his helm nodding in mocking agreement. “Then I better not let you cut yourself. I want you to cut thirty blades.” Mirage looked at Hound and then the surrounding grass. “Yes, that grass. You’re going to have to learn how to use it.”

The outlander slowly lowered closer to the field and just barely nicked the first blade before it was swiftly snatched from his servo, and he was pushed onto his back. He was met with the blade just inches from his face and Hound on top of him. “H-Hound?”

“This _isn’t _the outlands Mirage, everything _can_ and _will_ kill you if you aren’t ready to defend yourself. The clan can protect you, but only so much. Again.” Hound didn’t like the fear that was in Mirage’s optics, but he knew it was important for him to teach the mech how to protect himself. The future Father returned the dagger to Mirage and stepped away so Mirage could stand up. Mirage rose to his peds and moved away from Hound before attempting at cutting the grass again. As soon as he started slicing through the first blade, Hound rushed him, but this time Mirage was prepared fast enough to clumsily roll out of the way. “Good, but you can’t roll away from danger forever. And most of the danger out here can’t be smooth talked, your tools are your weapon.”

“I know, but I don’t want to hurt you.” Mirage responded as he cut a few more blades. Hound dusted himself off before diving for Mirage. Out of reaction the white and blue mech threw the blades of grass at the mech. Hound curled his body to protect his face from the projectiles coming at him. They stuck into the mech's arm.

“You won’t hurt me.” Hound pulled the metal blades out of his arm and decided to do a different strategy. He lowered into the grass in front of Mirage. The mech held onto the knife tightly as he looked around in a panic. He started cutting more while keeping his systems aware of Hound stalking him. As Mirage got ready to cut the final piece of grass, a sound came from behind him and he jumped to his peds with fear spiking through him. There was a flash of green coming for him and Mirage shouted as he let his body react. He was tackled to the ground and the rolled in the sharp field before Hound was on top of him laughing behind pain. “Primus Raj, you have a wicked arm.”

He sat up, still straddling the shocked mech. The wilds mech grabbed his dagger and pulled it out in one yank as he cried out in pain. Mirage finally snapped out of it when he saw the wound leaking energon from Hound's right shoulder. Hound saw the panicked expression in his optics, and he pulled him into a hug. Mirage returned the hug with a shaky ex-vent. “I’m okay Mirage. You know why I had to make you attack me.”

“I… yeah, yeah I know.” He curled his digits tightly into the green mech's back. Mirage's optics looked down at where he had stabbed Hound and he pulled away to get a look at it. “I didn’t hit anything major did I?”

The green mech picked up the grass that he had Mirage cut and started making layers with it and pressed against the deep cut. “Nothing too important. Want to do this exercise again or move onto a bit of a chase?”

Mirage asked with a naïve look on his face. “A chase?”

“Mhm. We are about five miles from the camp, so if you can make it back to camp without me catching you, then I will show you something that not even your people know exist. And if I catch you, then you’ll just have to run faster next time if you want to see.” Hound said as a playful smirk appeared on his face an impish twinkle in his optics.

The mech already knew he was going to lose this race, but he was going to push himself just for laughs. “Okay, but I want you to have a handicap. No smelling me or using fields.”

“Now I may not be an expert in math, but I am pretty sure that’s two handicaps.” Hound stepped close to Mirage and pressed the dagger into his servo. Their optics didn’t move as Mirage’s digits curled around the small hilt of the blade. He didn’t think about the fact that he didn’t have any place to store the dagger, but it came to the forefront of his processor when the green mech took a few steps back and he took off running. Hound was going to give Mirage a bit of a head start before tracking him down.

The suns were rising which meant that the herds would be taken down to the pasture. Mirage tried to remember the way back, but his systems were in high stress when the nocturnal creatures finally went into stasis and left the forest in that eerie silence. He stopped running to catch his intakes and get his bearings. “Really wish you would just activate, you stupid mod.” There was the sound of something snapping and Mirage looked around in a panic for the way back to the camp. _Think Mirage, think. How do they find their way back?_ He remembered that Hound stomped down any paths they walked down.

The ex-noble looked over his shoulder when he heard the steps getting closer. He saw a flash of green and he knew it was cue to run like the wind. As Mirage got deeper into the forest the closer the sound got, but he didn’t stop his running. He was pushed onto the ground and he laughed a bit before something sharp curled into his back. There was a roar near his helm before whatever that was on top of him was thrown off of him. He sat up and started panicking as he sat there and watched Hound rolling around with a large black feline. Hound looked at Mirage. “Raj, dagger!”

He panicked more as he stared at the mech that was pushing against the large cat. Mirage continued to stare before the large cat fizzled out of existence and that only stunned the mech more. Hound stood up and walked over to help Mirage, but he saw the faraway look in his optics. “Raj? Raj, are you okay?”

“Okay? Okay?! I-I… I can’t believe you did that Hound! I thought that was real! I know you were wanting to help, but I _was not_ ready to actually kill anything!” Mirage jumped onto his peds and threw the dagger at the green mech’s chest. He turned his back to Hound with his arms crossed. Hound tilted his helm and touched his elbow strut. The white and blue mech jerked his arm away, but the mech was persistent. He turned him around and frowned slightly in guilt for what he did.

“Raj, I’m sorry I shouldn’t have done that. I just wanted to test your response, but I should’ve remembered that you are not exposed to this kind of danger.” Hound truly felt bad for scaring Mirage. When the mech didn’t say anything, the future Father thought he ruined everything again, but a smirk slowly started forming. Before he could question the grin, he was tackled to the ground and his systems were jostled briefly. His optics flickered onto a grinning Mirage.

“I guess the hunter became the hunted.” Mirage teased before Hound snapped out of his daze and switched places with him. The two mechs stared at each in silence before they started laughing hard. “I guess not just yet.”

Hound shook his helm with another playful chuckle, “not yet. Where are you hiding that strength?” He teased as he squeezed his arms. Mirage rolled his optics before he realized the compromising position they were in. The green mech saw the sudden embarrassed expression on Mirage’s face. He looked down when he realized just where he was. Hound quickly stood up while pulling Mirage onto his peds. “I… um… sorry for being close. Perhaps we should get you familiar with the paths first, but you did pretty good on staying on track until you turned onto this path.”

Mirage’s face only heated up more, and despite how much he tried to keep his systems under control, it only made his fans kick in. His optics widened and he looked away with his servo covering his face at how embarrassing losing control was. “Maybe we could… walk around for a bit? Unless you have something planned?”

“Hmm… We could practice your throwing arm and cut more grass tomorrow? I want to wait a few solar cycles before taking you hunting, if you’re okay with staying and helping around the camp while I’m gone.” Hound offered with a guilty smile. “I usually go hunting every couple solar cycles.”

“Oh, well I suppose how we hunt back in the city is a controlled environment. Have you ever seen Jazz use his mod? He told me what it is, but I don’t see how it could be useful here.” Mirage was still annoyed that his mod was taking its sweet aft time activating.

“Plenty of times. He usually uses the loud noise to scare off predators. Also scares off prey, but he also plays to calm the youngsters.” Hound laughed at a few memories he recalled. He looked up at the sky before turning to the silent mech. “Raj, when you return to the outlands, could I perhaps come with?”

The white and blue mech eyed the other mech suspiciously before attempting at teasing him. “For a mech that hates the outlands, you are a curious thing aren’t you?”

Hound gawked and crossed his arms with a slight pout, “I don’t _hate_ the outlands. I just want to know why anyone would fight each other for easily accessible resources.” He huffed and turned his back to the ex-noble as he smiled and rolled his optics. Mirage gently pulled his shoulder back, so they were looking into each other’s optics. The green mech’s posture became lax when he caught onto the playfulness. “You also need to work on your jokes. Come on, I should probably let you clean off all this dirt and ceremony paint.”

“Hound, Jazz _and_ Bumblebee have shown me everywhere in your creators’… erm… home and there is no washroom.” Mirage pointed out while Hound took his servo and took him down a nearby path on their right. “It’s not like you have a spa house.”

“Spa… house? I don’t know what that is, but where I’m taking you is going to make this spa house seem like a mud pit.” Hound confidently said. Mirage allowed himself to be dragged through the forest; Hound was obviously considerate by moving branches or dropping his servo long enough to help Mirage over any obstruction. The green mech talked about any and every subject he could think of all the while ignoring Mirage’s questions on where they were going. Every time asked, Hound responded with, “it’s a surprise Raj.”

They came to a stop in front of a pair of trees that had low hanging vines that covered whatever had Hound grinning like a fool. Hound had Mirage cover his optics, once Hound parted the green tinted metal he guided the mech through and told him to open his optics. Mirage opened his optics and gasped with just as much astonishment as the pasture. Behind the vines was a large hot spring with cybernetic floral scattered around in the ground, fauna froze at the sight of the two large mechs before scattering. The water was a pinkish color, which threw the ex-noble for a loop, but it was beautiful to say the least.

“I guess the wilds is better than the outlands, huh?” Hound joked as he dropped the vines behind them. “This isn't where we normally clean ourselves, the main river up North is the usual spot, but I figured I'd give you that reward since you managed to run away from me.”

Mirage chuckled with a shake of his helm. “I can name _several _things that the city can't be beat at, but I suppose the wilds have its own beauty. Do you have a name for your clan, or do you just ‘the clan'?”

“I know we used to have a name back when there were other clans, but it's long forgotten.” Hound sat on the edge of the pond and Mirage joined him. Their peds going into the hot water. The Iaconian sighed heavily as his frame relaxed when he finally got hot water. “There's a few of these around, but this is the closest one to the clan. Raj, can I ask you something?”

Mirage hummed in approval after sliding into the water. “What?”

“You haven't seen anyone from the clan in the city, have you?” Hound didn't want to believe that Mirage would enslave his people, but he had also believed that Mirage wasn't going to come to the clan.

The mech shook his helm, “Iacon doesn’t believe in slavery. Anyone found to own a slave is imprisoned. Kaon allows it, but I’ve never been there. It's a dangerous city to live or be in.”

“Do you think they'll want to come back?” Hound sunk into the steamy water besides Mirage. He couldn’t stop staring at the mech that was sinking into the water with his optics barely breaking the waterline.

Mirage was silent for a bit before sitting up to answer the waiting mech. “I suppose some would want to return, but you have to realize that some may not want to leave the city. Don’t worry Hound, we'll figure it out.”

“We will?” Hound was answered with a silent nod. He smiled and enjoyed the silence with Mirage leaning against him for support. The pair were there for nearly an entire groon before Hound was becoming too hot. “Raj, we should get out before we melt our plating. Raj, it's time to online.”

The mech that was leaning against him startled himself. He saw Hound offering a servo to him, which he took thankfully. “Did I go into stasis? I’m sorry, if I made you wait. You should've woke me sooner.”

“Don’t worry, I fell into stasis too. Come on, we should head back to camp before Jazz volunteers to look for us.” Hound half-jokingly said. Mirage joined in the banter.

“Perhaps we could do this again?” The shorter mech inquired while they left the spring. The other mech didn’t need to be asked twice, he eagerly nodded. They were entering the campsite just as Jazz was trying to convince his mate to let him look for them because he was ‘concerned’ for them.

The Father saw his son and the outlander and mutter ‘thank Primus’. “Look Jazz, they have returned just fine on their own. Hound, where did you go?”

“The pasture and then the spring just past the energon field. Did you need anything Sire?” He asked while still holding onto Mirage’s servo. Hound didn’t seem to notice their interlocked digits, but Mirage, Jazz, Ultra Magnus, and every passing clan member sure noticed. The Iaconian’s cheek plates heated up when his thumb rubbed the back of his servo.

“No, I just wish to know where you took th-… Mirage. Tonight, you and Pyra are in charge of your siblings. Jazz and I will be going hunting and will not be returning until early in the solar cycle.” Ultra Magnus informed his eldest before his name was called out, and he retreated to go see what it was.

Jazz gave a very animated sigh, “don’t worry you two, they should all be in stasis by the time we leave. Only one you’ll have to really listen out for is First Aid.”

“I better not get any news about a sparking, cause there’s enough craziness until Pyra moves her aft out of there.” Hound teased Jazz and the Inamorata threw his helm back in laughter.

“Triage already told us to keep it in our chests. If either of you need me, I’ll be in the field with Bumblebee and a few of the others mining energon.” He smiled at them before heading off for the field. Jazz lifted a servo slightly in the air and spun on his heel to look at the two mechs. “You two behave yourselves now.”

The Polyhexian retreated quickly when the two awkward mechs looked at their servos, dropping their hold just as quick as Jazz leaving. Mirage cleared his voice box and looked at Hound after he pulled himself together. “So… is getting stuck sparkling sitting how you imagined your lunar cycle?”

Hound was staring at the other in a bit of shock, but the wide optic expression was replaced with a cheeky smile. “No, but if it’s with you then it’s worth it.”

* * *


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mirage gets a surprise.

Ch. 8

Mirage was watching Hound play fighting with Swerve and Nautica while Pyra Magna was cleaning Javelin’s face. First Aid was entertaining himself with playing some crude version of medic. His current ‘patient’ was Bumblebee, who didn’t seem to mind it. Beachcomber was grooming Hellhound and talked the creature’s helm off about his day.

“So, you’re only staying for a deca-cycle? Pyra Magna questioned Mirage while waiting Javelin to clean her pelvic plating. Mirage whipped his helm to her direction.

“That is correct, do you have something to say?” Mirage spoke with a cold tone, but kept his gaze averted with an expressionless gave in his optics. Pyra gave a startled sound while her brother started snickering at the interaction. First Aid stopped playing medic and pushed himself onto his peds and waddled over to Mirage before is legs decided that they weren’t going to work anymore. The mech quickly shot forward and caught the sparkling before he could fall too far. Mirage sat him back on the ground after the sparkling had his moment of crying. “Are you okay First Aid?”

The sparkling looked up at him and giggled as if nothing happened. He tried to climb onto the Iaconian’s lap, but his tiny arms couldn’t lift his weight and it was frustrating the poor sparkling. Mirage lifted the white and red mech onto the couch beside him. “Hoo-Hoo!” He made grabby servo for Hound that had stopped playing to let them all calm down.

“Is it charge time Aid?” Hound stood up with a smile on his face. The younglings all whined.

“Well you can put them down, I’m going to go see Trailbreaker.” Pyra Magna waved behind her and retreated to avoid the upcoming turmoil. Hound barely got the first part of her name out before she was out of sight. Mirage looked over at Hound and saw the pure terror in his optics.

The green mech slowly looked down just before Nautica and Javelin booked it. Bumblebee tried to sneak away; Beachcomber went down the short hall where their rooms were located. Swerve broke for the entrance while First Aid just sat beside Mirage and broke into a giggle fit at seeing his brothers and sisters flee. The Future Father threw his helm back with a groan. Mirage hid his chuckling behind his servo when he realized why the older femme left as quick as she did.

“Want some assistance retrieving them?” Mirage teased while standing up with First Aid in his arms. Hound nodded as he picked up Bumblebee up from behind the couch.

“Five more kliks! I’m not tired!” Bumblebee kicked and hit his fists like a sparkling. And through apeoid see apeoid do, First Aid saw that his older brother was getting upset and joined the Polyhexian in his fit.

Hound started panicking when he had two mechlings throwing tantrums. “Oh, come on you two, please don’t cry.”

Mirage rubbed the sparkling’s back and tried to calm First Aid down, but he wasn’t going to stop since his brother didn’t stop. “Hey, if you all calm down I’ll uh… tell you a story from the outlands.”

The two tantrum throwers stopped as the others that had hidden finally poked out of their hiding spots. “Really!?” They crowded around his peds either by laying on their front or sitting down with their legs crossed. “Do the outlanders really hide the stars? Are they covered in itchy paint? Can they really not do anything cool like us?” There were more questions, but Mirage silenced them with hushes.

“Well you can see some stars, but it’s not as easy to see them as you can here. I’m not sure what you mean by itchy paint. Some do have abilities, but they aren’t sparked with the mods like you. There are some that can even transform into bigger bots.” Mirage explained and the younglings’ optics widened in amazement. Hound sat on the ground in front of the window beside his cyberwolf with a smile in his optics. “There’s a city… hmmm… really big camp called Praxus are full of winged mechs and femmes, and they have a special place called the crystal garden. It’s filled with billions of different colored and sculpted crystals. A lot of outlanders would go see the crystals before spark bonding.”

Swerve made a disgusted sound at the mention of bonding. “Bonding gross. Is that what you and Hound gonna do?” Nautica folded her servos together and made an ‘aww’ sound with First Aid folding his tiny servos and blew a raspberry.

The two grown mechs both heated up, but it was Hound that spoke for them. “Swerve, Raj and I are just… friends. And bonding is something bots do when they like each other.”

“But you like him. Are you going to bond?” Bumblebee looked at his brother with a confused frown. The question only made the pair heat up more.

“Well it’s difficult to explain.” Mirage rubbed his wrist. He saw that First Aid had fallen into stasis in Javelin’s lap. “Well it looks it’s time for stasis.” The mech wanted to stray away from the topic as fast as possible. Hound went over and picked up the recharging sparkling, the remaining younglings whined as their brother herded them to their small rooms. Mirage went over to the large window, it looked into the vast forest. Hellhound sat beside the Iaconian and looked up at him with a confused whine.

Hound had laid First Aid in the middle of his Sire and Jazz’s berth, made sure he was good before going across the hall to check on the first pair in first room. Bumblebee, Beachcomber, and Javelin shared a room and the easiest to tuck in. Since Beachcomber was already in recharge, so the green mech just had to tuck him in before tucking the other two younglings. “Good lunar cycle Bee, Jave.”

“Night frér.” They each hugged and kissed his cheek before settling into their berths. Hound stopped just before the doorway and put a hollowed out rock over the brightly glowing crystal, dimming the lights. He went to the other room where Swerve and Nautica were in their room until First Aid was old enough to recharge on his own. They were already recharging, so he just covered the crystal.

Hound went to the main room to see Mirage sitting on the couch, in stasis with Hellhound laying on the ground beside the mech. His helm was laying on his paws, but he was on alert. The green mech went to pick Mirage up, but his friend sat up and pressed his helm to Mirage’s leg. “What, you want him to stay here?” The cyberwolf huffed before settling back down when Hound joined the large creature on the floor. He looked up at Mirage as he rolled over with his arm dropping just above Hellhound.

It was about the time that the Father and Inamorata returned from ‘hunting’. They quietly entered their flat, pleasantly surprised to see both Hound and Mirage in stasis. Jazz looked up at his mate while mouthing ‘aww’ which got a small optic roll. Hound had moved onto the opposite end of the couch. Hellhound was curled up between the two mechs, his helm rested on his partner’s leg. Ultra Magnus nudged his mate to their room and gently moved First Aid from his spot.

“Magnus, I think that they could definitely work out if they keep this up.” Jazz lifted his son into his arms with a smile. “I mean we were like that vorns ago and look how we turned out.”

“Yes, but you had more of a survival instinct than he does. But I agree that Mirage could potentially bring something to the clan. Potentially Jazz.” Ultra Magnus pointed a digit at his mate when he saw the smile on his face.

Hound onlined when he felt something off about his surroundings. He looked around and noticed that Mirage wasn’t where he had seen him last. The green mech had a long moment of panic when the other’s scent was dull. He followed what scent was left and found Mirage sitting on his berth with a small box in his servos. The mech lightly knocked on the wall, getting Mirage’s instant attention. “Hey.”

“Hello. My apologies, I was just thinking about things.” Mirage closed the box and subspaced it before jumping to his peds. He looked at the green mech with a confused expression. “What?”

“You looked sad looking at that.” Hound went over to the large window and sat inside the hole. Mirage pulled it out again and held it tightly. The green mech saw the sadness hit his optics again. “You don’t have to tell me if you’re not ready.”

Mirage sat back down as he opened the golden lid. He looked inside before pulling out a holo-image, holding it out in Hound’s direction while refusing to look at him. Hound joined him after a bit of internal debating. When the larger mech sat down the ex-noble finally spoke. “Those are my Creators. This was taken before the fire that… ahem… that got them.”

In the image it was a slender blue femme standing proudly beside a slightly taller mech, standing between them was a young Mirage. Hound gently touched the image before looking back at Mirage with a sympathetic smile. “You look a lot like your Carrier.”

Mirage’s face heated up and smiled embarrassingly. “Hush you. Her name was Moonracer, his was Alpha Trion. My aunt and Carrier were sisters and my Sire used to be my Uncle’s mentor.” The ex-noble took the box and image back with a shaky ex-vent. “Everything was lost except for this.”

“What is this called? Jazz doesn’t even have this.” Hound hated to ruin the moment they were having, but he couldn’t get the strange new thing out of his processor.

“Oh, this is called a holoimage. We have this item called a camera and we have others take the image for images for us, or we download it from our memory banks.” Mirage explained as he closed the box and set it on the berth behind him. He stood up and gave the green mech a playful flicker of his field. “I believe we have arranged plans we had discussed yesterday. I believe it involved me learning how to use a knife. That is unless you have something else planned?”

_Oh, I can think of somethin- no bad Hound, now is not a time to think with your equipment._ Hound scolded his sudden sidetracked thought. “We should work on our stamina. Wait… I mean your stamina! Wait… I-I-I mean we should uh… let’s go for a run.” With what little self-confidence Hound had he left Mirage in his room.

Mirage pressed his digits against his firmly sealed lips as he actually giggled at the slip-up. He calmed himself before rejoining Hound out in the front room. “I’m ready for that run.” Hound nodded with what Mirage assumed was a relieved smile.

“Race you to the pasture?” Hound suggested playfully and Mirage groaned at the thought of having to run that far. The green mech chuckled and gave his shoulder a sympathetic clap. “I’ll give you a head start.”

The blue and white mech nodded, “energon after?” When Hound nodded the Iaconian flashed a smile before taking off. He was actually excited about doing something like this.

Mirage knew that if anyone back from Iacon saw him actually running or enjoying himself they would keel over. He saw that the clan members would stop what they were doing to watch him book it through the camp. The ex-noble risked looking over his shoulder and saw Hound coming for him. Mirage silently yelped and took off before Hound could get ahold of him. The outlander remembered the path to the pasture thanks to have onlined so early in the solar cycle to see CatSCAN and Outback taking Beachcomber and the herd to the pasture.

Hound waited for Mirage to disappear into the trees before going over to the energon reservoir. He started filling up a canteen with the energon before he was joined by one of the warriors named SharpEdge. “Greetings. Where’s the outlander going?”

“_Mirage_ and I are having a little race. I’m just giving him a bit of a head start while I get us some energon.” Hound gave the warrior a calculated look.

SharpEdge rose his servos in a sign of submission. “I’m not here to fight. If the outlander makes you happy, then it was meant to be. If you wish, I can take him on as a trainee when you can’t.”

Hound looked at the mech with a bit of surprised expression before it turned into an appreciative smile. “Really? That would be awesome SharpEdge! Thanks, I’ll tell Raj about it.” Hound screwed the cap on before putting it in his bag. He nodded at the warrior before going after Mirage. The wilds mech was excited to see the progress his friend made.

_Wow, made it really far._ The military green mech climbed up a tree and jumped through them, watching Mirage slow down to look around with a bit of uncertainty. “You’re close, but you have to think on your peds out here!” Hound’s voice startled Mirage out of his thoughts. Mirage watched him jump down in front of him with a confident smile as he sized him up playfully. “Here, you’re going to need this. Maybe this time you’ll be able to take me down today.”

“I highly doubt that but thank you for the confidence _and _the pressure you decided to put on me.” Mirage took the blade from the other mech before he looked over Hound’s shoulder with his optics growing. “What in the-”

Hound looked behind him expecting to see a creature behind him, but when there was nothing he turned back to see that Mirage was running off. The green mech looked at the retreating frame in surprise before it softened into a chuckle. “Smart.” Hound took off after Mirage, completely missing the piercing green optics watching them. Mirage watched the trees break, revealing the pasture and he cheered in excitement. He heard branches cracking under him, he held a proud smile at Hound as he broke the tree line. “You’re a lot faster than you give yourself credit for. Unless you were still wanting that surprise.”

“Well I don’t know if anything could top that hot spring, but I still wish to see.” Mirage slowly stepped into the long grass and managed to cut a couple blades before Hound started walking into the field. “The herd didn’t return from grazing, where are they?”

“Outback and CatSCAN said they were taking the herd downstream. Beachcomber has a lot to learn before he’ll be able to take care of the herd by himself. Once Comber is old enough and is trained to the paimens’ expectations, then they’ll split up the responsibilities between the three of them.” Hound answered before diving for Mirage, but the mech shouted in shock and stumbled out of the way. “Well we can say that you’re really good at running.”

Hound groaned as he pulled out the blades of grass that were lodged in between the pieces of his frame when he slid across the ground. Mirage knew that Hound wanted him to attack him, but he still didn’t want to hurt him. “I know, I know.”

“How about this, hit me ten times and you can teach me something.” Hound compromised with the ex-noble while watching Mirage nervously slice away more of the micro blades.

Mirage stopped cutting to think about his options momentarily before nodding in agreement to the deal. “I agree to your terms.”

The two started the little training/game, not stopping to give the other a chance to get a word in. They were both riddled in microscopic cuts from the blades. Hound had gotten a few attacks in before Mirage managed to get the final attack. It was well past mid-cycles and the pair were feeling the effects; their fans were in high gear and their tanks were low. The white and blue mech let himself fall to the ground, hissing in pain as the grass sliced him up more. Hound joined his sparring partner on the ground, taking it a step further and laid in it.

“Primus, I’m so sore.” Mirage groaned out a pained chuckle. He rubbed his ankle to soothe the aching feeling.

“Well that just means we trained you good today. I didn’t kick you too bad did I?” Hound scooted down to get a closer look at the ankle strut that the outlander was massaging. The second his digit touched the strut and it flinched away; he got his answer. “We’ll take you to see Triage when we get back.”

“That would be appreciated.” Mirage looked at his plating, looking over the millions of already self-repairing cuts. He looked over at the green mech with a passive expression. “Hound, I know it is probably a little too early for this, but-”

Hound sat up quickly, “shh.” The blue mech gawked at the mech’s rude interruption, but when he went to speak Hound covered his mouth. “Shh. Something’s watching us.”

Hearing this got two reactions from the ex-noble, fear that something was hunting them and disbelief that Hound would try his hologram trick again. He pulled the servo away and stood up with his arms crossed. “Hound, do you seriously expect me to fall for your hologram again?”

A roar sent the avians flying and Hound reacted by shoving Mirage to the ground. Mirage sat up after regaining his senses; he saw Hound tumbling with a feline that was twice the size of Hound. The green mech was trying to kick the large creature off, but the feline had its claws firmly latched on his thighs.

“Raj, run and get help! Raj, run!” Hound ordered as he successfully got a punch in the side of the predator’s face, stumbling away until the feline recovered and pounced him again. Mirage was frozen in place, he looked at his servo where the small blade was held loosely. His digits curled tightly as adrenaline filled his systems. “Raj, no don’t do it!”

All sounds sounded like they were underwater as Mirage ran for the large cat that had its jaws latched around Hound’s shoulder. The Future Father screamed in pain. Mirage grabbed the tip of the blade and threw it with as much strength as he could muster. The feline released its hold of Hound as it yowled in pain from the blade getting lodged in its side. Mirage got excited that he actually hit something before he saw that he was now in the feline’s sights. “Uh-oh.” Mirage quickly ran off in an unknown direction.

Hound huffed as he heaved himself into a sitting position. ::I need… frag… I need your help Trailbreaker, now. We got attacked by a ball tail and now it’s chasing Mirage towards the rust fields. Triage, I need you to come and patch me up. Frag!:: He tried to hold his arm in place, but the pain was too much for him to keep hold of the limb.

::On it. Pyra and Ultra Magnus were hunting close by.:: Trailbreaker heard the urgency in his Future Father’s voice and reacted just as urgent. Hound was covered in major cuts from the ball tail felinoid left on his frame. He knew his scent was going to draw out more predators, but it wasn’t like he could do much other than hope that his sister and Sire got to Mirage fast. Unfortunately, by the time Triage and Trailbreaker got to Hound, the green mech crashed from his repair systems working to repair him.

Ultra Magnus and Pyra Magna heard the roaring sound, giving the two clear indication of where the mech was at. Mirage stopped running when he came to a river. His leg struts were burning from the non-stop running. He whipped his helm behind him when he heard the sound of something. The ex-noble only assumed it was the feline that was chasing him. He started venting hard when the feline leapt from the trees. Mirage was in such a state of fear that he was completely unaware of the fact that he was slowly disappearing from view.

Mirage’s slow disappearing act gave the wild mechanimal enough time to attack. He lost his footing and fell into the river with a shout. The feline stopped in its pursuit when it came close to following the still invisible Mirage into the water. Ultra Magnus and his daughter found the ball tail pacing the river with so much persistence. The Father roared his engines, startling the felinoid who was ready to attack until it saw the size of the both of the bots. It took off as Mirage rippled back into view.

“Are you okay Mirage?” Ultra Magnus pulled the smaller mech out of the river. The outlander nodded with a shaky ex-vent. “It would seem your modification has activated.”

“Didn’t even try attacking the creature did you? Just ran and left my frér to fend for himself! You _jabroni_.” Pyra Magna revved her engines before marching up ahead of the two mechs.

Mirage opened his mouth to defend himself, but he sighed and let it go. He looked at his servo wanting to trigger his mod again. Ultra Magnus walked alongside the mech and spoke with a neutral tone. “My daughter has a fiery personality, but that’s only because she cares about her family. And she is wrong, you are not a coward, you risked your safety by having the ball tail chase after like that. Hound is safe back at camp.”

“I should have done more, killed it or chased it off! But I froze and then abandoned Hound.” Mirage didn’t know what else he was supposed to do besides run. It’s not like he was a skilled fighter and if it could take down someone like Hound he knew he didn’t stand a chance.

“Had you stayed with my son then you both would have been killed. When we return to the camp, have Jazz fix your comlink so your system is compatible with ours.” Ultra Magnus didn’t need to say anything to make it clear that the conversation was done except by his tone. Mirage wondered how his aunt and uncle were doing. He never actively thought about them until he was brought to the clan. It was an odd feeling to worry for someone or loved ones.

It was a long walk back to the camp. By the time they returned it was well into the night and the first thing Mirage heard was the excited cheers from Ultra Magnus’s younglings. Seeing the excited smiles on their faces brought an actual smile on his face, reminding him of his own youth. The moment of happiness was interrupted by a pain filled cry coming from the Läakäri’s hut. Mirage broke into a run for the hut, stopping the entrance just as Triage reattached wires and pushed the arm back in place.

Hound was biting down on a metal rod as he screamed again. Mirage knew that the green mech was damaged, but to see it up close he felt even worse for not doing anything. Flatline saw Mirage standing there and he returned to applying a clear gel to all of the cuts. “He is okay.”

Triage looked over at his assistant with confusion until he saw the outlander. He nodded in agreement with Flatline’s statement. “Flatline is right. Hound is doing better now that we have that arm fixed. He will be in stasis for a bit. Would you like to sit with him once we finish up the lacerations?”

“I… Is that okay?” Mirage questioned

The Läakäri nodded as he helped Flatline apply the gel. “Do you want some gel? It is filled with nanites that help heal cuts.”

“I’m okay.” Mirage shook his helm after walking in further. He sat down on the edge of the cot with his ankle struts crossed. The mech didn’t want to disturb Hound while he was recharging. Hound had remained still for a good portion of the day the next solar cycle. Mirage didn’t leave his side while he waited for him to online. Jazz had come to visit when he hadn’t seen the ex-noble, and he walked in on Mirage laying right next Hound. The green mech had his recently attached arm around Mirage’s shoulder. They somehow managed to squeeze both of their frames into one small cot.

It was roughly mid-day that Hound finally onlined to pain all over. He winced in pain before realizing that he wasn’t alone. The next Father looked over and saw that Mirage was pressing himself firmly next to his own frame. Mirage had started stirring, after booting up the pair looked into each other’s optics with bashful smiles sliding on their lips. Hound was the first to speak, gently rubbed Mirage’s shoulder. “Hi.”

“Hello.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For some reason my end notes showed up in the end of the previous chapter, so I apologize for that.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hound teaches Mirage how to hunt. Well attempts to teach him how to hunt

Ch. 9

Several solar cycles slipped by agonizingly slow for Hound as he watched the hunting party leave for the morning. He couldn’t do anything to even help around the camp until he got the all clear from Triage. The green mech hadn’t even seen Mirage after the seventh solar cycle which both worried and concerned that something happened to him. When he was watching Bumblebee help one of the watchers keep an optic on a small group of younglings, he saw the white and blue mech following Jazz with their arms full of energon crystals. He perked up instantly and went over to them with a cheery smile.

“Heya Raj, need help?” Hound hated not being useful, and he secretly hoped that Mirage’s naivety would enable him to be helpful.

Mirage shook his helm, “no you are supposed to be letting your arm recover. And Jazz has been helpful in teaching me a lot; I’ve gotten better with the blade.” He gave the monochrome mech beside him a grateful smile.

“Aw come on Raj, I’m going crazy from boredom.” Hound whined in disbelief and pointed an accusatory digit at Jazz with a scowl. “How dare you use Raj against me.”

Jazz snickered, “I do no such thing. Come on Mirage, we should deposit these before Hound steals them from us. Hey, did you tell Hound the exciting _news_?” He playfully nudged the white and blue mech, who heated up with embarrassment.

“I’ll show him in private.” Mirage looked over at Hound with a smile. The three mechs went over to vat and tossed all of the crystals inside. Hound got excited at the mention of news. Mirage saw the sparkle in the Future Father’s optics, and he nodded in confirmation. He noticed that Jazz had left them to talk. The ex-noble nervously ran his digits down the side of his helm with a nervous chuckle. “I apologize for leaving early this solar cycle, Jazz wanted to take me around to the rust hills and… help me defend myself some more. I believe his words were ‘to make sure my son wasn’t just trying to get inside your plating.’”

Hound’s face heated up as his engines stalled for a moment before he quickly bursted out. His servos waving frantically in front of him. “No, no, no I would never get in your plating! I mean I would if you wanted too! I mean not that that’s what I’m thinking about doing, because I’m more than my equipment. I-I-I mean… I’ll shut up now.” Hound ducked his helm with an embarrassed groan. He could not believe that he just blurted all that out!

Mirage looked at the deeply embarrassed Hound with a sympathetic smile. “Oh, don’t worry Jazz embarrassed me too with telling me about how my movements looked like a zap pony foal learning how to walk.”

Hound gave a half chuckle and he rubbed his shoulder. “Weellllll… if I can’t do anything, maybe I can teach you how to hunt and track like a _proper_ _wild mech_.”

Mirage scoffed with a baffled sound, “actual hunting? I’ll have you know, that I’ve done my fair share of hunting back in Iacon.”

“Having your targets placed out for you with trackers embedded in them, doesn’t count as actual hunting. Come on, I’ll make sure that you don’t trigger your own trap.” Hound playfully poked the ex-noble’s chest and gave a smirk. The green mech was about to lead Mirage out of camp before they were stopped by Blackshadow and BombBurst transforming in front of them. Mirage knew these particular fliers were trustworthy, but in Iacon he heard a lot of terrible things about fliers and almost always the rumors tended to be true. “Blackshadow, BombBurst what’s wrong?”

Hound sensed Mirage’s uneasiness and he was confused why he was scared. Blackshadow was one of the few Vosians that was sparked in the clan and didn’t have a trine. The clan had heard how Vosians, like a few of their clan members, were needing to be either sparked into trines or they formed trines shortly after reaching second stage sparklinghood. “There’s been outlander sighting near the mountain. We lost them before the wyrm mine field.”

“That’s closer than I thought they would ever get. Have you told Sire and Jazz this yet?” The green mech looked between the two with concern. He was concerned by the sudden interest the outlanders had for invading their land.

“Not yet, we were just on our way to inform Father about this.” BombBurst shook his wings with a harsh shake of his helm. “Hope you’re not planning on taking him out there with hunters running loose. If we scare him, imagine how he’d react to seeing his own kind treating us.” Blackshadow mumbled something about Mirage joining the hunters, though the only one that caught all of it was a fuming Hound.

“Mirage, would stop them. He isn’t like those outlanders! You all need to stop judging him for something he had no part of! Every single one of you have been so unwelcoming to him since he’s risked everything to be here. If it had been back then, and we mated would you do this to him? I’ve been doing everything in my power to prove that we aren’t what the outlanders paint us, and you all are just proving them right.” The Future Father defended Mirage, getting madder when the mech he was defending was trying to tell him it was okay. “It’s not okay Raj! This isn’t the outlands where you can just talk about each other behind your backs and get away with it. We have to work together and cooperate with each other! Did none of you learn that from the slagging war that ended!?”

The entire camp stopped when Hound exploded with anger. He had heard almost everything his clan had said about Mirage and Mirage’s lack of self-defending. The ex-noble reached out for the mech again, but Hound started marching out of the campground with his servos tightly in fists next to his sides.

Mirage didn’t say anything as he looked where Hound walked off. He frowned slightly before sighing and following after the green mech. The outlander felt a tad responsible for the other’s outburst. It took a bit of tracking for Mirage to remember one piece of information that Hound gave him when they were on one of their walks. He ran for where he was highly confident that Hound could possibly be at. The mech slowed down to a walk when he saw Hound’s Carrier’s tree in view. Mirage wasn’t going to get himself stuck up there, so he compromised with getting Hound down.

He sat on the ground with his back against the base of the thick trunk. “I’m not really good at talking about my feelings. I’m even worse at knowing what to do without coming across as arrogant. I suppose letting the clan mistreat me would make up for what I did to your son. I know Hound… doesn’t yell because he’s mean, but because he wants what’s best for everyone. He has a very kind spark for even giving me a chance to prove myself.”

Hound had been in his usual thinking spot, trying to figure out how to apologize for how he acted. He heard Mirage talking to seemingly himself, but he wasn’t going to move and be caught. Mirage went on, hoping it would bring Hound down. “I would have really like to have met you, especially if he got your personality. Hound is so kind, I’d hate to see what the city would do to him if he went there.”

The Future Father smiled at the compliment and climbed down carefully. When Mirage heard the rustling, he jumped to his peds when Hound jumped down beside the mech. “I’m sorry Raj for blowing up on you back there. You’re… you’re just really important to me and everything I’ve said back there was true.”

“Well back in Iacon, we have this tradition of sorts where if a failed bonding contract were to… return to the tables because either party wished to attempt again, then it would be the other’s responsibility to do the courting.” Mirage folded his servos behind his back as he turned his back to Hound. He looked over his shoulder with a cheeky smile. “And since I don’t know how your people properly court each other, I suppose I will have to wait until we see my uncle for me to court you how outlanders court each other.”

Hound looked at him in surprise with a smile slowly growing. “Courting? Do you really want to? You’ve been here for only ten solar cycles.”

“Now this may be hard to believe, but we have been awkwardly flirting with each other for a while now. That is if you are interested in reattempting at courting.” Mirage kept his back turned with his attention quickly turning to the bit of forest ahead of them.

Hound stepped closer to the ex-noble and turned him around slowly. “I’m afraid if I let myself go on too long, I’ll end up saying something stupid, so I’ll just say it before I do.” He started grinning from receptor to receptor. “Frag yeah!”

Mirage laughed hard when the tension was swallowed up by Hound’s profanity. He started laughing so hard that he snorted. Both mechs stopped all sound and he covered his mouth with embarrassment in his optics. Hound pulled the servo away from Mirage’s mouth with a smile. “That is the cutest sound I have ever heard. Did I say something really funny?”

“You’re excitement just threw me off and your vulgarity was… oddly refreshing.” Mirage chuckled and looked into the forest that was near the bottom of the hill. The outlander folded his arms behind his back with a thoughtful hum. “I believe we talked about you teaching me how to actually hunt, even though I’m still offended by such a comment.”

The forest green mech snickered and gestured for Mirage to follow him to where he planned to take Mirage for his first true hunting trip. “Can I know you’re surprise now?”

“Hmm, perhaps I will show you during the hunt or when I use it to beat you in a fight.” Mirage gave Hound a cheeky smile. Hound snorted and pointed at the small cluster of cyber-organic trees that was on the other side of the rust fields. “Don’t you usually hunt in the forest?”

“Yeah, but there’s no ball tails to attack us again.” Hound teased while leading Mirage to the decided hunting area. “Can I ask what your people do with your hunts? You don’t eat them like we do, and you have no use for their pelts.”

Mirage knew that Hound was going to hate what he was about to say, but he knew it was better to be honest now rather than letting him find out. “Well depending on the type of hunt we do; we do different things with them. If we are trapping, sometimes catch and release, other times it’s to take them home. If we are actually hunting we shoot to kill and take images of them before fixing them and mounting them on display. I used to do a bit of both, but I didn’t do it on a regular basis. When I did go it was for some sort of gathering.”

“Those poor creatures.” Hound felt terrible for the wild creatures that were treated so poorly. Mirage could tell that it hurt the other hearing the treatment of the same species they treat completely different.

“How do you get them to cooperate with you? They are still wild animals, but they obviously trust you.” The Iaconian helped the wild mech stomp out the path that was already made, but he knew that if the paths were unused for too long, then it would start to overgrow.

“We basically earn their trust and bond with them like friends. I earned Hellhound’s trust when we went on our first hunt together. I saved him from an attack by a giant gear-bear, after that we got stuck in a small ice storm. Hellhound pushed me on the ground, at first I thought he was going to kill me, but he shielded my spark from the cold by laying on top of me.” Hound chuckled as he thought of the memory.

Mirage smiled at the lost expression in the mech’s optics. He could tell that the memory was especially important to Hound. “Since you seem to be the expert of mechanimals, what does Hellhound think of me?”

The forest green mech hummed thoughtfully, “he didn’t want me to move you when we fell into stasis in the main room. Hellhound doesn’t really like others; he won’t even hunt with any of the others unless the pack goes. I bet he would actually go with you, once I teach you a few things.” The two laughed until Hound stopped Mirage with an arm extending out. “First rule for knowing if you’re in a good hunting spot?”

“Uhh, mechanimals?” Mirage shrugged with a shake of his helm.

“Well yes, but when you can’t visibly see them everything leaves a track of some kind.” Hound pointed to two thin arrow looking set of tracks. “From these tracks, do you know where this creature is going and what it is?”

Mirage crouched down and looked at the tracks, looking up and down the tracks to see where it was going. “Well I don’t know what the creature is, but I do know it went that way.” He pointed further into some brush.

Hound nodded with a smile before pulling up a hologram of a minibot sized avian with small wings, a large beak, short legs, and a red crest on its helm. “It’s called the red crested archwing. It can’t fly because of its wing size, but it’s beak is super strong and can outrun an astrofox. We’ll set the first bait here to get its attention, and then place a trap further ahead.”

“Really? Just like that?” Mirage stood up with astonishment. Hound nodded and pointed to a bush that had small balls hanging onto it. “Bait?”

“Yup. Red crested archwings _love_ oil berries. Its shell is hard, which is why they have strong beaks. The Läakäri use oil berries for when someone’s oil reserves are low, or sometimes treats for the robochickens.” Hound explained as they picked a few of the berries. The wilds mech gave on a small squeeze to show the other mech what he was stalking about.

“What are we going to use to trap it?” Mirage asked as he watched Hound carefully set the bait. The green mech led him quickly further down the path.

“I’m gonna need to show you how to make net and a satchel.” Hound teased as he pulled out a folded up net, giving a side of it to Mirage and pointed behind the mech. “Tie it around that tree while I tie to this one.”

Mirage walked to where he was supposed to be and tied to it as tight as he possibly could. Hound looked over at the uncertain mech with a smile. “Perfect Raj. Now we just wait.” He went over to the mech’s side and took him further back to hide them from sight. Mirage went still by how close Hound was to his back. Hound didn’t seem to know what was going on with Mirage as he got even closer.

“Uh, Hound?” Mirage became pinned between a rock and a hard place; the rock being the trunk of the tree and Hound being the hard place.

“Yeah?” Hound looked down before a sound got his attention and he got excited. He pointed just beside the white and blue mech’s helm. “Oh, shh look it’s coming. When I give the signal, pull the cable.”

Mirage nodded nervously; he still couldn’t get over the fact that they were so close to each other. There was the sound of sticks breaking and rocks being kicked around. A blur was heading towards their direction, a tap on Mirage’s side both startled and caused the trapped mech to activate the trap. When the blur got caught in the net, the quick release sent the caught avian to the ground in a panic of squawks. Hound ran out of their hiding spot, tackling the already downed creature. “Raj, I need your help.”

“Wha-!? What am I supposed to do?” Mirage came out of their hiding spot with more hesitation. Hound put a knee on the body of avian and then gently held its beak away from his face. He used his free servo to frantically pull out his knife and held it out to the panicked mech. “You want me to kill it!?”

“Raj, you’re going to need to get used to this. We don’t do this for fun, we do it to survive. During the cold season, when energon is hard to find how do you expect us to live?” Hound asked with a violent jerk of his servo. Mirage took it from the mech and knelt beside him, seeing fear in the avian’s optic. A servo gently squeezed his, getting him to look into understanding optics. “We kill to survive. It’s kill or be killed, Raj.”

Mirage took a deep intake with his digits curling around the small hilt tightly. He nodded stiffly and looked at Hound for instructions. The green mech pointed to just below its helm and made a straight line with his digit. Mirage pressed the blade against the mechanimal that was crowing and turned his helm away as he moved the knife across. Mirage felt the frame go limp under his touch, he refused to even look at it. “I’m sorry.”

“What? Don’t be Raj, I know it was hard for you to do it, but we have to do this.” Hound yanked the net down and removed it from the now dead creature. He forced Mirage to look at him again and he gave him a supportive smile. “You did a good job. The easier part is done, I’ll do the rest now.”

The Iaconian nodded listlessly as he watched Hound take the blade from his hold and took the limp frame into the bushes. Mirage stood slowly once he pulled himself somewhat together. He didn’t go hunting a whole lot back in the city, and when he did it was always with blasters so the mechanimal was always deactivated by the time they got to their quarry. Killing a creature so close to him, actually struck fear in his spark. _This is what they have to do in order to survive? Primus, can I do this?_

Mirage touched his chin thoughtfully. Hound finally emerged from the bushes with the remains wrapped up in a different sack. He looked slightly guilty and looked at the outsider sorrowfully. “This won’t be enough to feed everyone; you can head back to the camp while I finish up hunting.”

The servo that was around Mirage’s face dropped, “what? No, I will help. I apologize for my reaction, but I am fine Hound. I don’t know why I panicked so much.”

The future Father hummed with uncertainty, but in the end reluctantly nodded. “Okay, but if you get too upset let me know and we can stop.”

“No, you’re right, I have to get used to this if I wish to stay.” He shook his helm and cleared his voice box. “If we brought more small quarries back to the camp, how many would we need?”

Hound gave the bag over his shoulder a once over before answering. “This size? About thirty-nine more with this weather, during the cold times about ninety-one.” The green mech gave a rough estimate of what they needed.

Mirage knew that there was a much better way to feed the clan. “What if we used that to catch something bigger?”

“We could possibly attract a predator with it, but many of the predators are hunting in the forest. There are a few larger avians that would hunt this, alright let’s go.” Hound gestured and the pair walked through what was left of the small patch of greenery. The small forest soon turned into a craggy plain that came to a stop at the foot of a massive mountain.

“We’re climbing this!?” Mirage pointed up at the mountain with his jaws dropping.

Hound laughed and shook his helm. “No, we’re going to leave this here for some scavengers while we go find something to snack on.” He dropped the bag on the ground, ripping a small hole into the bag, and took Mirage’s servo without cleaning the bit of spilt energon off. It made the ex-noble extremely squeamish at the initial squelching sound, but he got over it eventually as they walked along the base of the mountain.

“How will we know if we got something?” Mirage asked in hopes to distract his optics from looking at their interlocked servos.

“The scavengers here make lots of sound when they’ve found a meal. And they’re big, so I’ll take care of this kill while you watch. I don’t want you getting hurt.” Hound worried for Mirage’s safety especially when these scavengers were a lot bigger than his Sire. The wild mech didn’t want the outlander to get hurt, especially by the scavenger they were about to trap.

Mirage gave Hound an amused look but nodded anyway. “Hound, you can’t keep treating me like a sparkling. If I am going to stay here, I need to learn how to do these things. Even if it’s barbaric.” He couldn’t deny how patient the green mech was being with him. And Mirage appreciated it.

“Okay, and I suppose I should give you some credits for not demanding to be taken back to the city.” Hound stopped in front of an opening in the mountain base. “Low lights in here. The crystals in here never see the lights of day, so too much light will cause them to shine so bright your optics will malfunction.”

The ex-noble laughed in disbelief but turned his lights to the lowest possible setting. “You have a way of making your world sound dangerously beautiful. Does the tribe use them for anything?”

“No, but they are a great snack when we’re out this way. Do your people eat crystals for snacks?” Hound questioned as they walked inside the dark craggy cave. As they got further inside the cave was soon sparkling in a variety of greens, blues, purples, and reds. Mirage gasped softly while looking around with a look of admiration. He stopped to look at a cluster of burgundy crystals that stuck out of the cave wall.

Mirage carefully touched one of the jagged crystals, hearing an amused chuckle coming from Hound. He looked over at the green mech with an innocent look in his optics and his lips slightly pursed together. “What is so amusing?”

Hound shook his helm and pointed to the crystals that the mech was next to with a proud smile. “The crystals my Sire gave my Carrier were red. Triage says that red is a good sign to a pairing. Which I suppose explains why my gift didn’t sway you to bond with me.” Hound started laughing embarrassingly.

“What? No, that wasn’t it at all. I was just not ready to give up everything for a mech that I had never met and because my uncle wanted me too.” Mirage said defensively with his posture straight and arms crossed. He saw the gentle expression from the mech that leaned against a small boulder, and he realized the teasing tone that had been used. “Oh, you were playing. I am sorry for not catching on so quickly. Joking is foreign for me.”

“No need to apologize Raj. Here, try it.” Hound tossed the blade to the startled mech; relieved that Mirage caught it without cutting himself. He watched Mirage manage to cut off a very small sliver of the red crystal. “How are your tanks by the way? I forgot to bring any energon with us.”

The mech shook his helm as he popped the red crystal into his mouth before his optics widened with a look of panic, which got Hound to zoom to his side. Mirage managed to swallow the melted geode and he started coughing once it hit his tanks. “I’m… okay. Scrap that was very hot. Okay, red means spicy.”

“Duly noted. Why don’t we try this one over here? It’s on the sweeter side.” Hound took Mirage to a small purple crystal that was just above their helms and took a small chunk off of it. He held it out in front of the white and blue mech, expecting him to take it from, but he wasn’t expecting Mirage to lean forward and taking it with his mouth. The green mech looked at the other in utter shock as his face plates heated up with just as much embarrassment as Mirage when he realized what he had just done.

They both turned away from each other with embarrassing smiles. After collecting themselves a bit longer, they spun around ready to say something, but a thunderous roar and something crashing to the ground caused everything to shake. Their arms both flailed in attempt to catch themselves, but Hound ended up falling on top of Mirage. The ex-noble froze beneath the larger frame when he felt something, he didn’t think he should nor had felt in this point in time. Hound’s lips.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You like that ending? No? Well don't worry it'll get better. :)


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 17 days before Mirage has to return to the city, but a life threatening problem forces him to leave early. Hound makes his move.

* * *

Ch. 10

Jazz and Ultra Magnus were helping around the camp before one of the watchers called out Hound and Mirage’s return. They were about to greet the pair before Mirage went invisible and Hound dropped their catch in a pile before going the opposite direction of the mountain. The leaders looked at each other and then the directions of the two that were supposed to replace them.

“Go see what is bothering our son, I will speak to the outlander.” Ultra Magnus looked at his mate, going after the invisible mech. Jazz sighed and prayed to Primus that his mate went easy on Mirage. He followed where he knew Hound would be at, finding him instantly.

The Polyhexian sat beside the green mech, “so mind telling me what’s going on?”

“I fragged up the hunt so bad. I fell on top of Raj and kissed him! Jazz, he won’t even talk to me. I can’t believe I did that!” Hound hid his face in his servos. Jazz bit his bottom lip before hugging his mid-section with him breaking into a laughing hysteria. The green mech looked at his adopted Carrier with a distraught look in his optics. “Jazz, this isn’t a joke! He ran away from me!”

“Hound, okay relax. Look, mechs like Mirage don’t just allow casual kisses. You probably startled him, just give him a bit to calm down.” He said after laughing a bit more. The Polyhexian knew that the clan mech was going to have quite the challenge to convince the ex-noble to allow a courtship.

In the flat, Mirage was pacing around with his arms crossed. He couldn’t believe that he had just kissed Hound! Well it was more like Hound fell on top of him and their lips just touched, but still he couldn’t believe it. The mech was so stressed that when he turned around he bumped straight into a frame, and fell backwards with a shout.

Ultra Magnus caught the mech’s arm and pulled him onto his peds. “Mirage, relax and tell me what happened. You will stress yourself into stasis lock.”

“We kissed." Mirage covered his face and leaned against the window that doubled as a seat. “It was an accident, but l felt… something.”

The Father joined Mirage, “if you felt something then why did you flee? Do you not want to feel something?”

“What? No that’s not it. I just... back in Iacon a mech with my status would be mated off for political power or credits. Rarely do couples feel love. My friends, their creators never recharge in the same room let alone speak to each other unless they have too.” Mirage folded his arms and leaned forward with a heavy ex-vent.

“When someone wishes to court in the clan, they would offer a gift before trying to take them out for a lunar cycle hunt, and then come to the Father and Inamorata for blessings.” Ultra Magnus lifted his crystal necklace up to get the mech’s attention. He touched the large white crystal that was in the center of the thin twine. “Jazz went missing for three solar cycles. I was about to send parties to find him, but he returned with a big grin, energon crystals and meals, and this. He told me that he wasn’t going to return until he found the perfect one.”

“Is Jazz that… determined?” Mirage didn’t want to be rude by using the word he was going to really use.

The Father released a half snort, “to put it mildly, yes Jazz is determined. Stubborn would have been a more appropriate adjective, but my mate doesn’t allow himself to be pushed around.”

Mirage half chuckled, “he is a very dedicated mech. I never knew him before, but I can tell he’s happier.”

“Jazz had his ups and downs just like anyone adjusting to a new place, but he has been a great asset to the clan and a good companion to me. Hound is like his spark Carrier, but he is very much like Jazz in personality. When he wants something, he will get it, but if my son’s affection is something you don’t want then nip that problem in the bud before it blooms.” Ultra Magnus gestured for the entrance; Mirage looked at the crystal curtain with long silence.

_I want Hound’s affection, don’t I? I felt something when we kissed and he’s been so sweet to me. Not to mention he is kind of cute when he gets flustered._ Mirage started rubbing his wrist before hurriedly leaving the mountain. As he was leaving with Ultra Magnus behind him, Hound was returning with Jazz beside him. Hound stopped dead in his tracks when he watched Mirage stride over to him with such radiance.

“Raj, I-" he was interrupted by Mirage grabbing his servos and pulled them to the same level, and pressed their lips together. The Future Father froze in place when the ex-noble pulled away with both of their faces heating up. Hound blinked several times and replayed the memory several more times to make sure that that just happened. “Wow.”

Trailbreaker walked over and slapped Hound on the back, snapping him out of his daze. “Okay lover boy, come back to Cybertron. You have a clan to run.”

Hound shook his helm and looked at Trailbreaker briefly as he answered. “Yeah, yeah right. The clan. I, _ahem,_ I’ll see you later Raj.” The subaltern groaned and dragged Hound away by the servo. Despite being dragged away, Hound still managed to lock optics with Mirage.

“Wow Mirage, I did not think you had it in you. You silenced Hound.” Jazz teased the mech as the clan were quick to return their duties. He looked over their shoulders to look at his mate. “We’re going to go track for the hunting parties tonight.”

“Stay safe out there. We haven’t seen any outlander hunters, but it doesn’t mean they are gone.” Ultra Magnus warned them before putting one of his large servos against his mate’s face.

Jazz hummed with a relaxed smile, “I will always be safe.” He stepped away and took Mirage’s wrist with an excited smile. “Come on, I want to see what Hound has taught you.”

“Oh. Okay!” Mirage was forced to go into a sprint when the Inamorata pulled him along like a ragdoll. The pair were scouting and tracking for several groons before Mirage stopped all movement. He felt this feeling hundreds of times through his entire teen phase and his adult phase. “Scrap.”

The Polyhexian stopped in the middle of describing the tracks of what they were currently tracking. He stood up with worry, “scrap? What do you mean scrap?”

“I think my heat cycle started.”

Hound smelt it, the sweet addicting smell of the mech he wanted. He was just a room away, but his Sire stuck Bumblebee in his room with Mirage in it. The Future Father was going mad by the sheer smell of Mirage’s heat. It had been only four solar cycles since Jazz broke the news to him that he wasn’t going to be able to be alone with Mirage until his heat cycle ended, and it already felt like an eternity.

The Future Father was watching Mirage help in the fields with the watchers and younglings. He was on edge and he was the only who could smell the sweet scent. ::I’m sorry we can’t be alone; I wasn’t even aware that I was going to start my heat cycle.::

::It’s okay Raj, hearing your voice is calming for my frizzed systems. It would seem Primus has a wicked sense of humor.:: Hound chuckled, trying to suppress the purr in his words. Even from how high up he was, Hound could still smell Mirage. ::Are you in any pain?::

::No, Triage gave me something to suppress most of the pain.:: Mirage stopped picking to watching a couple of the younglings run a bit away from the fields. One of the watchers called them back to the group. ::What do you do to prevent inbreeding?::

::Well you’re here, so that’s a new line. Plus, there’s still Jazz. I suppose if more outlanders were willing to learn our way, we could mate with them.:: Hound sat down on the branch as he took in a huge whiff of Mirage’s scent. “Primus, he smells so good.”

::Future Father, Father has summoned the warriors.:: BlackShadow commed him and successfully pulled Hound out of his little fantasy world.

Hound sighed in disappointment before climbing down and ran to go meet with his Sire and the other warriors. There was Apelinq standing hunched over next to Triage with pressing his shoulder, trying to stop the energon leaking from the open wound. The green mech went over and sniffed the ape’s wound. “Midnight dust? But how? The outlanders can’t possible have the ability to make this. Father, what are we going to do?”

“Trailbreaker and a few of the others will go and take care of these outlanders. Hound, you and I will have to do something about the midnight plants.” Ultra Magnus commanded while Apelinq was guided away by the Läakäri. Hound nodded and whistled loudly, instantly getting a response from Hellhound.

“Stay with Raj for me.” Hound ordered the cyberwolf and pointed to the fields. The large creature barked and sprinted off to find the mech. The Father and future Father and the group of warriors ran off before they split off into different directions. They had to wait until the foliage cleared up some more before attempting at transforming. Midnight dust came from a cyber-organic plant that grew in the outskirts of the rust hills. The plant was appropriately named Unicron’s spark because of the glowing purple color it gave off at night. The dust from the petals can only be harvested at midnight because the dust caused a numbing affect. Hound had learned about this from Triage when he had taken him to collect the plant.

“Sire, I have a question about eh… interfacing.” Hound asked with discomfort. He didn’t want to talk to Jazz about it because he would just make jokes before giving a serious answer. Despite him and his sire not having a close relationship, he knew that he would give him an actual answer.

“What about interfacing Hound?” Ultra Magnus replied bluntly.

The green mech drove up beside his sire’s large cab, “well Jazz told me that outlander arrays were… different. And since you are the only one in the clan that is with one, I uh… was wondering how they are different.”

Ultra Magnus stalled causing Hound to slam on his brakes and swerve in front of him. They both transformed and the shorter mech refused to look at his sire as he rubbed his helm with extreme embarrassment. Ultra Magnus was equally embarrassed by the topic of choice. “M-May… _ahem_… may I ask why you are suddenly asking these questions? You’re not thinking about… interfacing with Mirage now are you?”

Hound tensed and his fans went off with his servo covering his face. He shook his helm, “no not now. I just… want to know what I need to know to avoid visiting Triage or Flatline.”

“Right, well,” the Father rubbed his helm with uneasiness of why his son just had to ask him such an awkward question when they had something to do. “Why don’t we talk about this once we complete our current task?”

The younger mech sighed in a mixture of relief and disappointment that his question was going to remain unanswered. “Okay sire.” It was a good thing that they reached the rust hills for him to distract himself from his thoughts. He looked around and thankfully found a pressed ped mark. Hound crouched near it and started sniffed it to get the initial scent and then sniffed the air to get a direction. “This makes no sense, not unless this Outlander is a flier.”

“The lack of trails in the sky means this outlander isn’t a jet. We’ll have to send our fliers to find this attacker.” Ultra Magnus looked around before looking at Hound who was fussing in the sands of the rust. “And to answer your question from our previous conversation, the only appropriate answer I can give is to take your time. They are built smaller and can be injured easier than our people.”

“Got it. It’s too hot to burn the plants, we’re going to have crush them or something.” Hound rubbed his helm. He felt guilty for destroying wildlife, but if it meant protecting his clan from the outlanders, then he would have to do it.

“I know this will upset your brother as much as it upsets you, but this is for the clan.” The Father knew that Hound had a close connection to forest just as much as Beachcomber. Triage said that everyone had some kind of connection to their home, but only a few had as strong of a connection. He remembered how the Läakäri told him about a great clan Father named Onyx who could command the ancient beasts and transformed into one. It was said every step he took created the forest, his tears created the oceans, his ex-vents crystalized into the rust hills, and his roar scared the ground to create the mountains. He was known as the ‘King of beasts’ until he disappeared.

“I know, but can’t we take just one back to camp and save it? You taught me to value life, and even though it doesn’t have a spark shouldn’t we value its life too?” Hound knelt beside the small violet stalk that had a bell shape bloom at the head of it. He looked up at his Sire with a frown. “Beach could find a good spot to plant it, but we can’t let it die Sire.”

Ultra Magnus looked at his son with his cold stare, “Hound, we can’t risk the outlanders getting ahold of Unicron’s spark. But you are right, it is still useful to the clan. Okay, save one but destroy the rest.”

“What? Where are you going?” Hound stood up and looked at his Sire with a confused frown.

“To…visit someone.” The large mech looked over his shoulder, giving his son that look before transforming and taking off.

In the camp, Mirage was following Jazz with a small smile on his face. He was helping dump the energon into the boiling vat until he felt that someone was watching him. The ex-noble turned around to see the seeker staring at him from a ring that was designated by the small rocks forming a circle. “Black shadow, what are you staring at?”

“Come and take me on Outie!” The seeker egged Mirage on with his wings playfully flapping behind him.

Mirage crossed his arms and shook his helm, “I’m not interested.”

::Take the challenge. If you manage to last with someone like Black shadow, you’ll really impress the clan.:: Mirage heard Trailbreaker’s voice in his comlink. After the attack that resulted in Hound’s injury, Mirage had his comm system adjusted to be compatible with the clan.

The Seeker was lightly smacked on the arm by Bomb burst who mocked Mirage. “Don’t bother Shadow, precious Outlander doesn’t want to scratch his plating.”

Mirage turned around and walked to the Seeker with his digit firmly pointing to the ring. “I would say to put your credits where your mouth is, but you wouldn’t even know what credits are.” Black shadow was startled for a bit before he smirked, and they went to the ring. Some of the warriors that were chatting near the fence line were now gathering near the circle. Even some of the watchers held the younglings up for them to see.

The Seeker flared his wings and got into a fighting position while Mirage got into a position that Jazz had taught him when he took him out for training. They started walking in a circle before Black shadow dove for the ex-noble only for Mirage to jump out of the way with a shout.

_You can’t roll away from danger forever._ Mirage could hear Hound telling him in his processor. He turned his ped firmly and kicked the black mech in the aft. The Seeker lost his ped and was luckily caught by a couple of the warriors. Black shadow swiftly faced the Iaconian and growled with his wings flared more. “Well at least our future Father has taught you some moves.”

“Some.” Mirage replied with a snarky remark.

Hound and Ultra Magnus were returning to camp when they saw that there were no guards posted. That rose red flags but what caused them to run through with a battle in mind was the shouts coming from several members. They came to a startling halt when they saw the clan forming a circle. First Aid saw his Sire and waddled away from Jazz’s side to greet him. “Uppie Sire! Mimi pow!”

“Mimi?” Ultra Magnus, after having so many creations, he was able to decipher most of First Aid’s words. The sparkling pointed at the group that were cheering and threw fists in the air. “Who’s fighting First Aid?”

“Mimi, Adow pow.” The sparkling repeated himself while the two mechs joined the Inamorata’s side. Jazz looked over and then back at the two mechs that were still fighting. Hound saw Mirage’s helm from where they were standing. “Mimi pow!”

_Mimi is Mirage._ Both the Father and future Father both got their answer when they saw who was in the combat ring. Hound moved through the crowd to get a clearer view of the fight. He just managed to break through the frames before he saw Black shadow lift Mirage up into the air and then threw him into the ground. His servos clenched but then he saw the mech of his dreams turn invisible. Hound couldn’t help but sigh with relief to see Mirage disappear. He didn’t expect him to participate let alone accept a match against anyone any time soon.

“Did you forget who you’re fighting against Outie? I can feel your field with my wings.” Black shadow spit out the energon that had begun to pool in his mouth. He saw the future Father standing there and gave an impressed chuckle. “I’m impressed Hound, I thought you’d be wanting to keep him all safe in the mountain. He’s lasting a lot longer than I thought.”

“Yeah well I may be a softie, but I want my future Inamorata to be able to defend himself against mechs like you.” Hound crossed his arms to try and act tough. _Wait scrap, did I just say that!?_ He saw a shift in the ground behind the Seeker, which was super risky on Mirage’s part, but he had to learn the hard way. Like his Sire said, he can’t spoil Mirage. The green mech was going to have to teach Mirage some sneaking tactics if he wanted to be able to get the upper servo in fights or hunting.

“Oh, hold on it’s about time I wrap up this silly fight.” Black shadow turned around and grabbed ahold of something that wasn’t seen. His knee went straight into an invisible force, causing Mirage to fizzle back into view while the crowd all maid sounds of sympathetic pain. Mirage was dropped to the ground with Black shadow’s fist getting near his face. When Mirage flinched, Black shadow stepped back with his fist opening up and a smile was on his face. The white and blue mech took it with pain in all of his limbs. “I give you my wings.”

The ex-noble smiled and their servos slid up their arms. Mirage remembered that Jazz did the same to Prowl when they had met. “Thank you.”

“Okay, okay femmes you’re done showing off now. Both of you to the cabin now before you both leak enough energon to attract the corpses of Predacons.” Triage broke the moment and pointed to the direction of his cabin. The Läakäri turned his attention to the next father and gave him a firm point. “You, stay out while I repair him. After I’ve fixed them up then you can fawn over him.”

Hound looked offended and crossed his arms, “I do not fawn!”

Mirage chuckled as he followed Triage, Black shadow, and Flatline to the Läakäri’s hut. The outlander knew that he was going to definitely going to feel the pain later, but he actually felt good after that. He probably didn’t even look that great either, but nothing a quick wash couldn’t fix. Not to mention it helped distract him from his heat. Hound, however, was shaking from his sensors exploding again from arousal in seeing Mirage fighting made him feel all sorts of feelings. He quickly marched to the mountain and hid in his room. The green mech finally let his fans go and that only seem to make his problem worse.

“Got the hots for Mirage?” Pyra’s voice pulled him out his thoughts and he sat up quickly with a shout. The next Father forced his fans to turn off as he turned away from his sister. The femme sat beside her older brother and looked out the window with a heavy ex-vent. “I suppose I haven’t been the most supportive sister when it comes to your love life. Especially when you were the one to convince Sire and Carrier to let Trailbreaker to court me. And you seem to really love him.”

Hound looked ahead with a smile going on his lips. “Thanks, that means a lot. I really want to make things work between us. Do you think my Carrier would have liked Raj?” He looked over at his sister with a look of needing an answer no matter the response.

“I think she would have loved him especially if he makes you happy.” She playfully elbowed him before leaning back against her servos with a half chuckle. “He really showed the clan he can hold his own. A bit more training and maybe he could beat me.”

“Oh everyone can beat you, Pyra.” Hound teased which got a gasp of disbelief and a smack on the chest. “I’m playing. I’m surprised he was even willing to go for a fight. Maybe with a bit more confidence I can get him to hunt.”

Pyra laughed and shook her helm, “sparkling steps frér, sparkling steps.”

When Mirage and Black shadow were released from Triage's grasp he rolled his shoulder with a groan. “Remind me to not introduce him to Ratchet. Primus are all medics programmed with no berthside manners?” The ex-noble was going to go see Hound after not seeing him nearly all solar cycle, but he was smacked on the back just above his new welds. “Ow!”

“Whoops, recently repaired sorry. Well you certainly impressed a lot of bots today Mirage, pits I’m impressed! Heard Trailbreaker contemplating on training you himself. And that’s saying something, he won’t personally train bots unless he sees potential.” Jazz complimented the ex-noble before stopping Mirage to get a good look at the weld mark on his arm. “Triage has done an excellent job as always. These will all heal up nicely, probably a few minor scarring.”

Mirage smiled with a turn of his helm, “well I wanted to show that I was doing my best to help the clan. That Hound’s training wasn’t just some cover.”

“He certainly loved the show. You should watch when Hound and Ultra Magnus play fight. During the melting point, all of the mechs decide that the best way to show off is to fight. Everyone thinks it’s fun and entertaining, but Flatline hates it.” Jazz laughed before he was tackled by Swerve. “Swerve, dear what’s wrong?”

“Sire has his scary face on.” The youngling whispered to his Carrier. He pointed to the entrance of the camp. In the distance was Ultra Magnus and Scylla.

The Inamorata looked back at his son with a smile before kneeling down in front of the youngling. “Why don’t you go take Mirage to Hound while I go see why Sire is making his scary face?” His gaze went up to the silent Iaconian.

Mirage knew that Jazz’s request was mainly to help keep his creation calm. The white and blue mech smiled at the youngling and held his servo out. “Why don’t we go check his room?”

Swerve nodded and ran up ahead with a smile on his face. After a few solar cycles, Mirage was actually enjoying Hound’s siblings. They were all general friendly and the younger ones seem to really like Mirage. The mech wasn’t so sure about Pyra Magna’s opinion on him, but he hoped she would start to like him. The two entered the flat and went for the next Father’s room. Mirage knocked on the doorframe, getting both of their attention. The femme stood and left while taking her little brother with her; she knew that they needed to be alone to talk.

When they were alone, the wilds mech smiled and patted the now empty spot behind him. Mirage sat beside him and looked down at his lap with a bashful smile. “So how was your first fight?” Hound questioned with a smile, hoping the conversation would distract him from how amazing the smell coming off the mech was. He leaned in close slowly and sniffed the white and blue mech’s neck.

Mirage felt the small ex-vents near his neck cables, causing him to shiver slightly. “Are you smelling me?”

Hound pulled away with his face heating up and looked away, “I- uh… yes?” He quickly looked at the Iaconian with a guilty look, “I’m sorry, you just smell so good and I can’t help it. You smell like fresh water, recently bloomed floral, a-amazing.” The green mech leaned in closer to get more of the succulent scent.

Mirage heated up with an embarrassed chuckled. He didn’t stop Hound from climbing on top of him and burying his face in his neck. The Iaconian heated up when Hound ran his servos up Mirage’s thighs. “H-Hound. I-I’m not ready for interfacing.”

“I won’t do anything that you aren’t willing to do or give. Just smelling you is enough.” Hound took a deep intake of the vents on Mirage’s helm. A whine escaped the green mech. He was already addicted to the outlander’s scent, but with the temptation of Mirage’s heat in the mix it made Mirage smell even more amazing. “Can I smell you all over?”

Mirage snorted softly and shifted under the slightly larger frame. “We should get on the berth then.” Hound made an excited sound before carefully moved both of them onto his berth. He moved onto the floor and started sniffing his peds, loving the new wild undertone scent in Mirage’s personal scent. “The outland smell is faint; the smell of the exhaust is almost nonexistent. Raj has anyone ever told you that you smell amazing?”

The mech covered his mouth while Hound sniffed the bottoms of his peds. He never realized he was so sensitive, but it made him laugh hard as the next Father pressed his face completely against the treads of his peds. “I’ve never had someone so into my… smell. Do I really smell that good?”

Hound nodded as he moved up to the white shins, “you smell amazing Raj. I could just do this all solar cycle.” The green mech moved up to his thighs, a whine built up in his voice box with his digits curling into the plating. Mirage shivered and struggled to keep his fans under control. “Primus Raj, I want to online to you every solar cycle, be covered in your scent, show you a good life here, to be a mech worthy of you.”

“H-Hound.” The ex-noble whined with his digits curling tightly into the thermal blankets. He didn’t know why he was so desperate sounding for the other mech. All he was doing was smelling and touching his frame, and it felt good. Mirage felt Hound move to his waist and the barely together mech lost the little self-strength he had, and his pelvic plating shot open. Both of them froze and just looked at the clearly leaking valve and spike that was slowly sliding out of its housing. Hound’s face was just as red hot as Mirage’s, but he carefully went for the interface array and just smelled near the valve. “H-Hound?”

“I’m not worthy of this part of you yet, but to just be able to smell it warms my spark.” Hound looked up with just his optics, his olfactory sensor was still buried in the damp valve. His servos were gripping onto Mirage’s hips tightly. The wild mech was going to reluctantly move on with his sniffing before the sound of the curtain being opened up pulled them out of the moment. Hound scrambled on top of Mirage’s frame to hide him from whoever thought it was smart to enter. Mirage looked like prey that was stuck under a predator, but he was too stunned to move away from the mech.

“Oh, dear Primus, you two. Seriously?” Jazz quickly turned out of the room, but that didn’t stop Hound from giving a deep growl that sent shivers through Mirage’s overheated systems. “Do not growl at me son!”

Hound huffed before going back to Mirage, and hugged himself close to his frame. The ex-noble was smart enough to realize that the mech on top of him wasn’t going to let anyone near him for a while. He felt Hound start taking in deep intakes from his neck again. “You okay Hound?”

“I am. I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have lost control like that.” Guilt dropped from the green mech’s words.

Mirage snort softly, getting the mech on top of him to look into his optics. “If smelling me is you losing control, I can’t wait to see what happens when I ask for you to not hold back.”

“Wha- really? You would want to interface with me?” Hound sat up, straddling the mech. Mirage turned his face away with a bashful look.

“If I didn’t want to then I wouldn’t have kissed you or let you bury your face in my plating.” Mirage sat up with a smile and swiped a part of the blanket they were on across Hound’s face. “You are so messy.”

Hound heated up before quickly licking Mirage’s cheek and took off through the curtain. The Iaconian sat there stunned before jumping to his peds and went to follow before remembering his plating was opened. Luckily Mirage was able to close it since his spike had slid back in its housing. He closed up and returned to chasing after the green mech.

He found Jazz gently scrubbing First Aid with a frown. Hound was crouching beside them with a worried look on his face. Mirage went over and knelt beside Hound, “is everything okay?”

“No, everything is not okay. Something’s wrong with Aid and Triage can’t figure it out, Javelin had another vision and can’t tell anyone, and the slagging hunters are growing!” Jazz snapped at the stunned mech. First Aid started crying before coughing and his chest crackled. The Inamorata stood up and tried to calm the sparkling down with a worried look of a Carrier. “I’m sorry.” The Polyhexian apologized before going to his room.

Mirage looked at Hound about to ask a question, but he shook his helm and gestured for them to leave before he would speak. They held servos and went for the little fields that the clan used as a garden. Hound sat down and Mirage planted himself next to him. Hound pulled his knees up and folded his arms them. Neither of them spoke before the green mech looked down with sadness.

“When a sparkling… deactivates the couple goes through a grieving cycle, it sometimes takes a meta-cycles before they attempt to try again. Just because the body may be ready, but the spark… the spark needs time to heal from the pain.” Hound looked up at the sky with a shaky ex-vent. There would have been a mech before Aid, but… something happened just before he was ready to be placed in his first youngling frame. He got sick, cried all the time, his spark started crackling, and then one solar cycle he wouldn’t online.”

“Oh Primus. Do you know what may have caused it?” Mirage moved closer to him, their fields just overlapping.

“We don’t know, shortly after the symptoms appeared he talked about this giant mech. The clan kind of fell in a dump when Heatrock deactivated, but Jazz… he just kind of disappeared for a while.” Hound hugged his knees closer to his chest with half his face hidden from view. “Then Jazz found out he was carrying with Aid, but now he’s sick.”

Mirage dipped his helm in thought of how he could help. He stood up and went back to the camp, going straight for Ultra Magnus who was talking to Flatline. Hound was jogging after him. “Ultra Magnus, I know I have no room to give my input on the welfare of First Aid, but my uncle’s medic may be able to figure out what is wrong with him. Since I’m going back to the city per our agreement, I would like to take him to see Ratchet.”

“You want me to entrust the safety of my sparkling to you and trust you’ll bring him back?” The Father crossed his arms and stared the other white and blue mech down.

“If you trust me with one son, then why not the other? What Flatline and Triage do is amazing, but Ratchet may know why he’s sick.” The outlander could see that Ultra Magnus was just putting up this cold front to hide all the loss he endured during his lifetime, just like he was.

Ped steps heading for their direction caught their attention. They saw Jazz holding onto First Aid in a blanket close to his frame. “Will your medic be able to save my Aid?”

“I-I don’t know, but he’s been around for a long time and has seen a lot of things.” Mirage looked at the Inamorata. “I promise I’ll keep him safe while in the city.”

Everyone looked at the Polyhexian that was looking down at his youngest son. He held him closer and placed a long kiss to his helm. “The rains will hit our part of Cybertron in three solar cycles. You won’t be able to transform with a sparkling.”

“Jazz, you can’t be serious to allow First Aid to leave the camp while he’s in his condition.” Trailbreaker looked at the Inamorata with his unneeded vote obviously a no.

The Polyhexian looked at the black mech with a frown, “I can’t… won’t lose Aid if there is a chance for answers. If this Ratchet may be able to save my sparkling, then I trust Mirage.” First Aid started coughing and cried into his Carrier’s chest.

“As the Läakäri, I also agree though little Aid is close to having to be upgraded to his third sparkling frame and outland Läakäris will not be able to do it. I suggest taking me along with you.” Flatline looked menacingly at Mirage, but after about the fourth solar cycle of being with the clan Mirage knew it was his way of making sure that everyone knew to not damage themselves. He looked up at Ultra Magnus after giving the Father his vote.

Hound made the mistake of locking optics with his Sire, and this only happened when his Sire was going to force him to talk. “Hound, you are the next Father, what would you do if you were in my current position?”

The mech looked at Jazz that was trying to soothe the smaller Polyhexian and then at Mirage that was looking at him. _Why does he have to put all this pressure on me!? I mean I understand why, but- no Hound focus on the question._ He felt Mirage’s servo brush against his and he felt weight lift off his shoulders already, and it helped him answer the question. “If we have a chance to save a life even if it’s from the outlands we have to take it.”

“Then tomorrow you can start your journey. Jazz, come along we’ll spend time with our sparkling.” Ultra Magnus wrapped an arm around his mate’s shoulder and led him back to the mountain. Flatline went for the cabin and Trailbreaker left to go do what he needed. Hound looked at the mech beside him and took his servo with a smile.

Mirage returned the smile, “thank you for trusting me.”

Hound leaned down and their forehelms and the tips of their noses together. “No, thank you for trusting me.”

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heatrock is a canon character, he is the torso of Gaia Guardian.


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mirage returns to the city with Hound, Flatline, and First Aid. Reuniting with old friends and making new ones. Maybe? And a surprise at the end.

* * *

Ch. 11

_Come on Mirage, it’s just a small tiny petro-rabbit. All you have to do is one slice across the neck._ The mech was staring at the petrified creature that was stuck underneath the weighted basket. Hound had wanted to take him hunting for tonight before they started their long, long walk through the forest. Hound and Mirage had been crouched in a cluster of bushes while they waited for something to trigger their trap. The Iaconian was impressed with himself that he learned how to make actual things! He almost never used his subspace, only using it to look at the small box with the image of his creators.

Mirage grabbed his dagger and looked at the green mech beside him one more time. “Hound why do I have to do this now? It’s too cute.” He whispered with his servo gesturing at the petro-rabbit grooming itself.

“I know, but you’ll have to do it eventually. Remember Raj it’s kill or be killed out here. If you do this one I’ll do the rest of the traps.” Hound bribed the mech.

The outlander silently whined before standing up and disappeared through the bushes. Hound peaked through to watch his progress. Mirage carefully lifted up the basket just enough to grab the small creature by the scruff. He held it away from his frame when it started flailing. Hound covered his mouth as he started laughing quietly. “Tuck it under your arm. There are three quick ways to kill petro-rabbits.”

Mirage grumbled about his paintjob, which he hadn’t complained about since being here, but the thing was going to claw him up and that was going to annoy him. He tucked it under his arm like ordered. “Hound, this is ridiculous. I’m never going to be able to kill anything.”

“I think, no, I believe you can Raj.” Hound walked over to him and pointed at the screaming creature. “Now, you can either slice its neck, stab its chest, or snap its neck if you don’t want the energon on you.”

“Snap its neck!? Hound!” Mirage nearly dropped the prey before Hound corrected his handling. “Okay, okay. Fine, fine. Still don’t like this.”

He took his dagger and rose it to its neck before pulling it away and looked up at the green mech. “Can’t you teach me to fish or something? I can’t kill it.”

“Oh, come on Raj, you killed the avian and you’ve watched me gut kills before. Why are you still scared?” Hound put a servo on his hips with a frown.

Mirage shook his helm, “I don’t know! I can’t do it okay?”

Hound sighed before taking the mechanimal and twisted its neck until it went completely limp. Mirage flinched and looked away with his optics. He took the blue servo with the blade, placing it in Mirage’s bag. “Are you scared of death? Raj, you said you hunted in the outlands. How is this any different?”

“I didn’t have to watch the life leave their optics?” Mirage stared at the fresh carcass in Hound’s servo. The next Father looked down at the servo that held the petro-rabbit and then up at Mirage. “I could and will do anything else for the clan, but I…-"

“Hey, it’s ‘kay I understand. Comber is the same way except he get squeamish when we gut them, but he still helps with everything else.” He placed the carcass into a hunting bag that Hound had brought with them to place their quarries in. “Do you want to set the traps and I’ll do the deed?”

Mirage snorted and took ahold of Hound’s now empty servo. “Hound, I will have to teach you about outlander phrases when we get to Iacon.” He saw the look of realization on Hound’s face appear which made him chuckle more. “Okay, okay ‘doing the deed’, while I know what you were referring to, in the outlands it means interfacing.”

“Oh Primus, I’m an idiot.” Hound groaned into his servo.

“No, you’re not, you just didn’t know. Come on we still have more traps to set up before we have to go.” Mirage snuck a kiss on Hound’s cheek before running away from him. Hound stood there stunned before coming to his sense and grinned at the game Mirage decided to play. He sprinted after the mech with a laugh.

They returned to the camp with the hunting bag full of petro-rabbits and they even had to carry a few. Mirage was amazed that they were able to catch so much. He was kneeling next to the next Father with a soft smile as he was learning how to skin their catches. Javelin walked over and tapped Mirage’s shoulder, “Mirage I need to tell you something important.”

The mech turned to face the femme with his servos resting in his lap. “What’s wrong Javelin?”

“The forest is in danger and the only way to save it is if you save my brother. Save First Aid. My vision I saw when you had your first meal with us, came true when Aid got sick.” She looked over her shoulder and looked down with her mouth frowning as she started crying. “I didn’t tell anyone and now Aid is sick, and it’s all my fault.”

Mirage may not have much experience with younglings, but he knew when someone needed comfort. “It’s not your fault Javelin and Jazz will understand that. First Aid would have gotten sick even if you did tell someone. Don’t worry, First Aid will come back to the clan safely.” He hugged her before pulling away to look at her.

Javelin was smiling again and hugged the Iaconian again, “thank you Mirage. You are a good outlander.” She ran off, leaving him and Hound alone again.

Hound touched Mirage’s servo, getting him to look up to see the appreciative smile. “Thank you Raj, I think she needed that. Jave has no way to control her visions and sometimes they’re good ones and others… are not.”

“All that power in that little processor would be stressful. How did you react when your modification activated?” Mirage asked while making his first incision on the petro-rabbit in front of him. He did think it was gross, but he would do about anything else with the mechanimals if it meant not having to watch the life drain from any optics. “What did you feel when you smelt everything?”

“I was a second stage sparkling when it activated and when did, I didn’t recharge most lunar cycles and the smells were so overwhelming that I couldn’t keep energon down. My Sire had to use his frame to block all of the smells. Jazz plugged into my frame and would play music to block the sounds.” Hound gave a half chuckle as he recalled a few of those cycles. “It wasn’t until I was a third stage sparkling and could actually have a conversation that Jazz helped me focus my senses. Sire did too, but he wasn’t around because of the war.”

“Can I ask how old you were when your Carrier was taken from you?” Mirage looked up briefly before watching Hound show what to do next with the body.

The green mech was quiet for a bit before hesitantly answering. “The only time I saw her was in a memory my Sire showed me of her holding me for the first time. Jazz played an audio file of her asking him to take care of me and… tell me that she loved me.”

“You were so young, and my people took her from you, how could you possibly want to have an outlander as a mate?” Mirage looked at him with confusion. He didn’t understand his reasoning to willingly want to be with him.

“I was angry, for a long time, but Sire reminded me that Jazz came from the outlands and my siblings are half outlander. Jazz told me that not every outlander is a murderer or evil, and that if I want to be angry then I would be just showing the outlanders that our people are savages. So, I learned to look at things from a different, happier angle.” Hound smiled at Mirage, “I have a Sire that did and does everything to protect the clan, I have an amazing mech that adopted me as his son and gave me so many siblings, and now… I have a mech that I want to make my Inamorata.”

Mirage looked away with an embarrassed smile. “You will make an amazing Father, Hound.”

The suns were high in the sky when the clan was gathering near the entrance and giving their good lucks and farewells to their friends. Mirage was hanging in the background before CatSCAN waved the white and blue mech over. “Come on over here!” Mirage waved his servos; he didn’t want to interrupt the moment. The red mech rolled his optics and waved him over again. “Get your aft over here Mirage.”

_No Outie or Outlander?_ He went over to the group and was surprised when some of the femmes hugged him, then the younglings and sparklings all pressed their noses to his. “Why am I being involved in this?”

“Because you’re the next Inamorata.” SharpEdge told him with a servo going to Mirage’s back. He used a single digit and touch the center of his forehelm and then touched the same spot on Mirage. “The clan knows.”

Mirage looked at the clan members put their fists across their chests. Jazz smiled at Mirage and dipped his helm since his servos were full. “You all are okay with this?”

“If we weren’t willing to have you as our Inamorata, do you think we’d let Hound get about as crazy as a cyberwolf in heat?” BombBurst teased their next Father. Hound silently gawked at the teasing before flaring his olfactory sensors and turned away with a pout. Mirage heated with an embarrassed smile. “Good luck.”

The group finally dispersed with the Father and Inamorata stepping to the two with First Aid wrapped up in a blanket. Flatline was talking to Triage while they were placing pieces of armor inside his satchel and then another bag. Jazz looked down at his son with a forced smile, but his field was sporadic and caused First Aid to react by cuddling closer to him. “Oh Aid, my sparkling. I love you, please get better. Be good for frér and Mirage okay my sweet little sparkling.”

Ultra Magnus put a servo on his mate’s back, “Jazz he _will_ come back to the clan safely.”

“Why can’t I take him just to make sure? My sparkling needs me.” Jazz knew the reason why he couldn’t, but he was hoping his mate would just let him go. He gave First Aid another kiss and nuzzle before handing him to Hound. First Aid whimpered and his spark started crackling again. Mirage’s satchel was full of energon crystals while Hound’s had the survival items. “Stay safe all of you.”

“We will.” Hound pressed his and Jazz’s helms together, “First Aid will come back safely to you Carrier.”

They left shortly after saying goodbye. Mirage looked at First Aid and remembered what both Javelin and Hound had said. “First Aid do you see a big bot in your recharge?”

“Bi ba?” The quiet voice asked from his brother’s frame. “Mimi. Hoo-Hoo. Fly.”

It seemed that the sparkling was just babbling with temporary contentment. Mirage was letting Hound lead them through the forest, but he knew he needed help. “Here, I’ll hold him while you make a path.”

Hound stopped to hand the sparkling to Mirage before he pulled out a machete and chopped down some of the low hanging branches. “Thanks. If he becomes too much let me know.” Mirage nodded as he looked down at the white and red mechling with a bit of a smile.

“You said Läakäris in the outlands have the same paintjob as First Aid, is that normal?” Hound asked Mirage as he and Flatline made a path for them.

“Most of them, yes, but they can have different colors and designs.” Mirage explained while being helped over a fallen log. Flatline started picking things as they walked alongside a small stream. “Flatline, what are you doing?”

The black mech held out his servo, “caesium berries. It’s soft and will keep First Aid full until we stop for the lunar cycle. Would you like to try one?”

The mech thought before nodding and took the small silvery-gold berry in his free servo. He adjusted the sparkling in his arm and held it out for him. Mirage helped feed the berry to the eager looking sparkling. The older mech chuckled and took another one and ate it himself. He made an impressed sound, “it’s actually pretty sweet.”

“More Fly!” First Aid pushed the blanket away and reached out for the Läakäri with a whine. Flatline snorted at the sparkling’s reaction before feeding him another one. “Mimi f-field.”

“My field?” He looked down with confusion at the mechling. “Oh, don’t worry. I just realized I’m going to be doing a lot of translating.”

Hound looked over his shoulder with a sympathetic smile, “well hey I’ve been practicing your language off and on.” He flashed and even bigger smile at him before looking up at the sky through the slightly dense canopy. “The first sun has passed mid-cycle; we’ve got about six groons till it’s dark.”

“Hound?” Mirage asked while they crossed the stream. First Aid was settling down with his tiny servos full of the berries. “It’s awfully quiet. Like too quiet.”

“I know. Stick close Raj. Flatline pick up any spark jolts?” Hound asked as he sniffed the air inconspicuously. “I’m not getting any scents.”

Flatline held up his wrist and scanned the area around them. “Nothing but ours. Where are the mechanimals?”

“First Aid, stop… stop squirming.” Mirage tried to keep the sparkling calm as he started getting restless. He started crying loudly and Mirage started panicking which didn’t help at all. Flatline went to his side and started looking over the sparkling. He opened his tiny chest plate just enough to barely expose his spark.

“He’s overheating. We’re going to have to go back to the stream and cool him down.” The Läakäri assistant looked at the next Father while pulling the blanket away from First Aid and folded it up before placing it between Mirage’s shoulder and First Aid's helm. “Hound, are you even listening to me?”

Hound waved at them to be quiet before tilting his helm up slightly and sniffed the air a few times. He revved his engines softly as he slowly went for his dagger. “Hunters. Go hide, quick.”

Mirage went to speak but feeling First Aid shivering against him reminded him that he was responsible for protecting him. The two adults went for the bushes while Hound quickly climbed up a tree to get an advantage of the hunters. He crouched down as a trine of Seekers filed into the small clearing.

“Are you sure it came from here? Come on Starscream, we’ve been put here for groons! Don’t you have enough test subjects?” A light gray and blue mech whined to the white and red mech. With them was a black and purple Seeker that looked rather bored with everything.

“I am positive I heard crying coming from here. Now shut it before you scare off the rest of the beasts with your whining Thundercracker.” The one named Starscream said before looking around. “Skywarp are you just going to stand there or help?”

The third mech leaned up against a boulder with his arms crossed. “I didn’t even want to come out here. It’s worse than being inside twenty-four groons a solar cycle. Can’t we just leave like TC wants?”

Starscream stomped his peds and flared his wings at the two mechs. “I want to study the creatures! We haven’t seen any of those primitive mechs, I bet we’re close to their camp!”

“Oh, come on Screamer, you’re not still going on about them are you? Why are you so obsessed with them?” Skywarp groaned.

“I just want to study them! What’s wrong with that? How can they survive? What do they speak? Can they transform? What are their breeding habits? We don’t know any of this because we haven’t had a chance to capture one and study it?” Mirage hated how that mech was speaking about the clan as if they were a bunch of chronohorses. _I wasn’t that bad was I?_

“Geez Star, you speak as if they aren’t Cybertronians like us. Maybe the reason they haven’t been caught and brought to Vos is because they don’t want to be caught.” Thundercracker’s wing twitched with a bit of disgust at how his trine mate was talking.

“Not necessarily, remember that Polyhexian in Iacon. The one that works with the Prime’s security team? He recently got that strange mech that barely speaks Neocybex.” Skywarp reminded them.

_Security team? Polyhexian? Uncle replaced Prowl? Hound did say a lot of people have been captured. Need to meet this mech. _Mirage carefully turned and handed First Aid to Flatline. The movement caused him to whimper, getting the three Seekers' attention. He saw Hound start to move from his spot, but he reacted by picking up a small rock and threw it into some bushes behind them. Two of the Seekers turned around quickly.

“Come on you two before they get away.” Starscream ordered before running through the bushes. Thundercracker quickly ran after the eager mech while Skywarp walked towards the three hidden mechs in the bushes. He was just about to push the shrub down before Starscream called for him again. “Skywarp!”

“I’m coming!” He shouted before teleporting away. All of them waited a few kliks before Hound made the first move by jumping down.

“It’s clear, come on we should hurry before they come back.” Hound took Mirage’s servo and continued leading them in the opposite direction of the Seekers. First Aid had fallen into stasis while Flatline closed his chest plate. “How’s he doing Flatline?”

The Läakäri replied, “he is doing better. Whatever is ailing him has subsided for now. Mirage, what were they talking about? They seemed to be looking for something, especially the red one.”

“They were looking for the clan, to study and learn about you. They also mentioned someone who works for my uncle having one. How many were taken from you?” Mirage looked at Hound while struggling to keep up. He looked over his shoulder to see that the black mech was also having trouble especially while holding a sparkling. “Hound, slow down.”

The green mech looked around and saw an uprooted tree. He sniffed the area and then dropped Mirage’s servo so he could get close to the plant before sniffing it. “The scent is too faint, whatever lived here is long gone. We can rest here for the lunar cycle. Raj, remember how to activate the pyre crystal?”

Mirage nodded as the bright red crystal was tossed to him. He kicked some debris out of his way before dropping to his knees and started digging a large enough hole for a crystal its size. The ex-noble was tossed the small bit of flint once he planted the crystal. Frontline knelt beside the next Father while he dug a larger and deeper hole. After a few tries, Mirage managed to get the pyre crystal to ignite.

“Good job Raj! Okay, Line I made it soft enough for Aid to lay down.” Hound informed the mech as he laid down some soft leaves in the dugout. Flatline carefully placed the sparkling inside before covering him up. “You two stay here while I go scout out the area.”

“Hound, you stay where we can her you.” Mirage gave the mech a stern expression to match the tone he had. “We don’t need you fighting off any ball tails for us.”

The green mech snorted at the warning before going over to him and kissed his helm with the tips of their noses touching briefly. “I will be safe. It’s _you_ that needs to remain safe. I will return in three groons.” He quickly disappeared into the forest, leaving only the sounds of his retreating ped steps behind.

Nightfall had fallen and Mirage was sitting in front of the pyre crystal with his knees to his chest. He was watching the flames in hopes the hypnotic wave of the flames would help him fall into stasis. It had been so long since he had seen his family and he didn’t know what his uncle would say about him running away. He couldn’t believe that he was about to just waltz into his uncle’s home with not one but three clan mechs.

“Credit for you thoughts?” Hound joined Mirage’s side before going on. “Jazz often says that when someone looks troubled.”

“I didn’t even have the ball bearings to say goodbye to them before coming here. I don’t even know what they’ll say, what if my actions drove them to hate me and I just ruined any chance of helping First Aid? What if my uncle knows that your friends are being held as slaves in his own city?” Mirage’s digits curled tightly around his knees. Hound scooted himself behind the stressed mech, pulling him close to his frame.

Hound slowly pulled his arms away from his legs and hugged him tightly. “Raj, when I met your uncle and aunt I could tell they were both honorable bots. And my sensory array has never lied to me. They will help us even if it’s just for Aid. As for my people, we’ll get our answers when we get there.”

Mirage was silent for a while before relaxing into the larger frame. “Thank you for that Hound, I needed encouragement.”

“Come on we need to get some recharge; we have a long walk ahead of us.” Hound stood up and moved over to the tree with the thin thermal blanket in his servo. He gestured for Mirage to sit with him. Mirage smiled and moved over to the green mech’s side. Hound threw the blanket over their upper half and laid his helm on top of Mirage’s. “Thank you Raj… for giving me… a chance.”

Mirage heard the mech fall into stasis with his servo falling into his lap. The ex-noble smiled before following him into recharge. When early morning came around, everyone was fueling, and Hound was juggling to fueling himself and First Aid with his own fuel. Flatline was looking over one of the new pieces of First Aid’s armor pieces. “Allite super magnesium, cybertonium, and titanium.”

“I’m sorry?” The white and blue mech looked at the mech, not realizing he had been staring.

“Our armor, I make it out of allite super magnesium, cybertonium, and titanium.” The mech gestured at the white piece, “the armor is stronger and lighter. It’s not as strong as Nosorons, but strong enough to protect us from most ranged attacks. Not to mention the materials are plentiful in our area.”

The ex-noble nodded, not fully understanding the entire benefits of the hybrid armor. “Is that why you often ask for someone to go to the fields when one of the sparklings or younglings are due for an upgrade?”

“Correct, the blades are made of cybertonium. In this time of the orbital cycle the blades are gray rather than green. In the season of the melting point, when the mechanimals enter breeding season, and the rivers have all melted will they truly turn green.” Flatline described to Mirage before holding up the piece in the small beams of light.

First Aid started giggling as he tried grabbing for the light. “Bi ba.”

“Bi ba? Oh, big bot!” Mirage didn’t react until it clicked in his processor and he quickly moved to him. “Wait big bot? What do you mean First Aid?”

“Bi ba night-night.” He laid his helm on his servos and pretend to recharge. The little sparkling threw his arms in the air with laughs, “Bi ba bi ba!” First Aid was happy for a bit before he started whining and hugged his chest. “Carrier! Carrier!”

Hound held his brother to his chest in hopes to calm him down. “Okay, we need to go now. Come on you two we need to make as much ground as possible.” He stomped on the pyre crystal and covered it up to ensure that it wouldn’t catch fire. Mirage helped Hound by carrying his satchel for him while they continued their journey.

Cycles, for cycles they walked while the dense forest was becoming more and more sparse. It wasn’t until they stepped through the tree line that they were greeted by the blinding light of the twin suns. They all covered their optics until they adjusted to the brightness. The three wild mechs were instantly uncomfortable, the two adults took a step back while Mirage was looking at the structures with a new set of optics. He couldn’t believe that he had been out in the forest with the clan for almost a deca-cycle.

“Mirage,” the worriedness in Flatline’s voice got Mirage to whip around. The small gasp came from the mech when he saw First Aid’s condition. He was pressed against his brother’s frame and the tips of his peds were slowly graying.

::Ratchet, Ratchet this is an emergency where are you?:: Mirage commed the old medic while gesturing for the two clan mechs to follow him. He looked up and down the road before sprinting across the road. ::Slaggit Ratchet I don’t have time for this! Respond you senile old bucket of bolts.::

::Nice to hear from you too Mirage. Are you proud of yourself? You feel all grown up after disappearing off the face of the planet?:: Ratchet sounded more annoyed with Mirage than he was annoyed with him. ::What do you need? I’m currently at the hospital tending to this idiot security chief, slagging idiot glitched again.::

_Security chief? No, focus Mirage, he said he was at the hospital._ Mirage booked it for the direction of the business district. ::Yell at me when I get there, I need your help. I have a graying sparkling from an unknown problem. You’re the only one that can help.::

Hound knew he shouldn’t, but he couldn’t help but look down at the slowly growing gray appearing on his brother’s legs. “Aid, Aid look at me. Hey, wanna play Läakäri with brother?” The sparkling nodded with weak whimpers. “Flatline, isn’t there any way you can slow it down?”

“Unless we get to the outlander Läakäri all I can say is keep him calm. Any stress to his spark can speed up the process.” He answered calmly.

::What!? O-Okay, how far are you from the manor? Nevermind Prowl is on his way to provide an escort.:: Ratchet informed the mech. ::Is that where you went? The manager at your apartment building said you went off world.::

Mirage knew his family would have checked his home after sending them that scrap of a goodbye. ::I’ll explain when we get there.:: He disconnected from the comm with Ratchet and commed Prowl. ::Don’t have time to explain, we’re coming up to the emporium.::

::I see you, are you able to transform?:: Prowl’s enforcer alt mode swerved in front of them. He recognized only Hound and saw the slowly graying sparkling in his arms and then the black mech hovering over him. “You said not to ask any questions. Are you able to transform? I will be able to provide a better escort.”

The two mechs looked at Mirage for a translation. He repeated the last part as he pointed at the road; they both nodded. Hound carefully handed First Aid to Mirage before transforming and folded the back cover open. Flatline followed his future Father’s lead. Mirage sat First Aid in the back of Hound’s alt mode before transforming as well. Prowl stepped in front of them and transformed with his sirens going on immediately. They followed the black and white vehicle down the center of the road. Hound kept his senses on First Aid while going faster than he ever thought he could.

They arrived to the large hospital that Ratchet had occasionally worked at. Everyone transformed before running inside where Ratchet was standing with a nurse. The femme foolishly went to take First Aid from Hound, but the green mech turned away with a deep growl. She jumped with a startled squeak. Mirage put a servo on the mech’s arm, “it’s okay Hound. She’s just going to take him to a room so Ratchet can figure out what’s wrong with him. “

Hound looked at his shivering brother and then the Läakäri, “keep safe.” He handed him over to the femme before standing beside Mirage. Ratchet and the femme rushed through the doors. Flatline saw that there were lots of outlanders staring at them which made him uncomfortable. Hound looked at Mirage for his help. The mech led them to a separate waiting room and hound looked at the Praxian. “Prowl ‘member you from… before.”

“Oh, your Neocybex has improved the last time we saw each other. Who are they? How are you Mirage, your aunt has missed you greatly. And I have missed you too my friend.” Prowl canted his helm at Mirage before swiping two digits across the mech’s chest plate. “You are certainly dirty; you usually complain if you are so much as lightly dusty.”

Mirage heard the small growl coming from behind him which got a confused look from the Praxian. “I’m in heat and Hound can smell them, he’s just overwhelmed. As for my physical state, we had to spend the lunar cycle in the forest.” He gestured at Flatline as he started introductions, “he’s Flatline, he’s the assistant Läakäri. The sparkling is First Aid, Hound’s youngest brother. I am doing better; you understand why I had to do it right?”

“I do not entirely understand what internally you were going through that led for you to leave, but I do understand you felt that you needed to do that. Have they treated you well?” Prowl questioned.

“They have. I need to talk to uncle, some mechs from the city have been bothering them, stealing their people for credits. And on the way here we overheard some Seekers saying that one of uncle’s own employees has one.” Mirage folded his arms with a look of disgust, “does he know? Does he know that he is allowing slavery in Iacon?”

Prowl’s wings twitched and he looked over at the two mechs that were staring at them. He looked back at Mirage with a brief look of guilt, “he does but it can be explained. We are currently looking into the situation. You know Optimus would _never_ allow something as inhumane as slavery in his city-states.”

“Where is he? Ratchet said the new security chief is in repairs, is the clan member here too?” Mirage asked before he heard Hound and Flatline shoot to their peds just as a loud gasp came from behind Prowl. The Praxian moved out of the way for Mirage to see a tall red mech with a single servo and a nozzle where the other would be at, two small white helm fins, and a folded ladder up ladder.

“Hound, Flatline?! Wh-What are you… did they get you too?” Inferno rushed over to them and hugged them tightly. Hound hugged just as tightly with him sniffing his chest.

“Your markings and crystals are gone? Did they take them from you? And no, we had to come here to save First Aid from what happened to… him.” Hound pulled back and sniffed him more, “you smell bonded.”

Inferno looked away with a slight frown, “the hunters destroyed them and stripped me. They did something to us when they brought us to their camp, we were heavily drugged, and we couldn’t fight them. And yes, I am bonded. Little Aid has the same thing that Heatrock had?”

“Did any of the others survive?” Flatline hurriedly grabbed his servo with worry in his optics.

“I- no… they deactivated from lack of fuel or resisting too much.” Inferno looked away with even more guilt. “Their leader… he tried to spark bond with Override, she… I’m so sorry Flatline. I tried to bring her back.”

Flatline sat back down with a lost look in his optics. Mirage didn’t know who Override was, but he could tell she meant a lot to Flatline. Hound looked over at Mirage, getting Inferno to look and watch him join the mech’s side. “Inferno, this is Mirage. The mech I was going to bond with. He brought us here to help First Aid and bring everyone home.” Mirage quickly elbowed him which got a startled sound out of him. “What? The outlands smell, you can’t be with nature, and-”

“I don’t want to go back Hound. Red Alert needs me.” Inferno answered Hound before looking down at Mirage and spoke in Neocybex, “you were the mech that was supposed to bond with our next Father. Why are you helping the clan?”

“I am and because it was time for me to grow up.” Mirage answered in their language. Inferno’s optics widened and he smirked with an impressed chuckle. “I’ve been living with them for almost a deca-cycle. Red Alert is the mech who replaced Prowl as the security chief?”

Inferno nodded before looking over his shoulder, “sorry to leave like this, but he’s coming around again and gets all finicky when I’m not around.” Hound quickly grabbed his wrist when he was halfway through the doorway. Their optics locked, one was filled with worry and the other had a look of understanding. “He saved me Hound, I’m happy.”

“Our home is always open to you Inferno.” Hound reluctantly released the mech and took hold of Mirage’s servo for support. Inferno nodded with a grateful smile before hurrying off. Prowl bid his farewell, saying that he had somewhere he needed to go, and told Mirage to contact his aunt. It was late in the mid-cycle, Flatline was distracting himself with First Aid’s armor before he looked up and felt it.

“Mirage, I must speak to the Läakäri that took First Aid.” Flatline looked at the mech. When Mirage went to tell him, he couldn’t just take him back there, Flatline shook his helm and pointed at his wrist repeatedly. “It’s important.”

The mech nodded with a sigh before coming Ratchet, ::I’m busy right now Mirage.::

::Flatline, their medic assistant needs to see you. He says it’s important.:: The mech stood and went to the hallway. ::How’s he doing Ratchet?::

::Good, you brought him just in time. But, his spark… it’s not whole. Did he have a twin?:: Ratchet questioned while scanning First Aid’s spark.

::No, but they had a sparkling that had the same thing that First Aid is experiencing, but he didn’t live. Hound said the first one started talking about a big bot before he grayed and didn’t come back. And First Aid just started talking about a big bot.:: The ex-noble crossed his arms and looked over his shoulder.

::This happened before? Big bot? Hmm… hold that thought, I have a theory.:: Ratchet disconnected before his voice came on over the PA system. “Protectobots to bay 3. Protectobots to bay 3.”

Hound and Flatline both looked around to figure out where Ratchet’s voice was coming from. Mirage pointed up to the two speakers that was mounted to the walls. “It’s called a PA system, it’s like a comlink for the hospital. Come on, I know where First Aid is at.”

He took Hound’s servo and led them through the large double doors before the staff at the desk saw them. Mirage was looking for a sign telling them where bay 3 was at. While looking for a sign to guide them, there were four mechs running towards their direction. One of them looked like an enforcer and slowed down while the others continued running. “Excuse me, but this area is for visitors and employees only.”

“My… friend’s brother was brought in a few cycles ago, and we just wanted to see how he was doing. He was brought back here with Ratchet.” Mirage explained while keeping Hound calm.

“That’s fine and all, and I bet medic Ratchet is doing all he possibly can, but I am going to have to ask you to leave.” The enforcer kindly explained as he gestured for the doors.

Mirage crossed his arms and decided to pull a card he never thought he would be pulling. “I _will _be taken to see the sparkling now or I will comm my uncle, who is the Lord Prime and have him tell you to let me see him. That sparkling was graying last time we saw him.”

The enforcer tensed at the mention of the Lord Prime and he looked around for help. “Ugh, fine okay but no funny business.” He marched ahead with a scowl. Mirage smiled proudly at himself as they followed the mech.

“What was that about?” Hound whispered softly.

“Never thought using my uncle as a threat would be such a great method of getting what I wanted.” The ex-noble explained while Flatline looked at the many closed doors. “It’s not as busy as it usually is, but it can change really fast. What do you do when a case the rust comes through?”

“We bathe in the delta.” Flatline explained bluntly. They arrived to where Ratchet was standing, talking to a gray-blue mech that the enforcer had been running with before separating from. The Läakäri looked at his wrist before the four mechs. “How odd.”

Mirage looked at the clan mechs, “stay here.” He walked over to them and tapped Ratchet’s shoulder to get his attention. “Ratchet, is First Aid okay? Flatline needs to see him, he’s due for his upgrade.”

“H-Hold on Mirage. Hot Spot, that sparkling in there could be the missing member of your gestalt. His spark isn’t whole, he spoke of a giant bot, and if we don’t try not only will his family lose a loved one, your entire team could suffer.” Ratchet gestured at the room as he ranted.

The mech shook his helm, “no way Ratchet. I refuse to form a bond with a sparkling!”

“That sparkling could die Hot Spot! If he deactivates on my table in my hospital then Defensor can never be whole. Just go see him, there doesn’t need to be any bond right now. I just need a sample of your team’s spark energy so I can strengthen _his_.” The medic was never one to back down from anyone without a fight. Even if Optimus himself said he was fine and didn’t need to recharge, Ratchet would force him to get a cube and lay down with a threat of hitting him with his wrench.

“Hot Spot, if the kid is the missing piece, then shouldn’t we take the chance?” A mech with blades on his back crossed his arms with the same look that Mirage remembered Sunstreaker used to have when he tried to act all tough. “Is the sparkling an orphan?”

The medic shook his helm, “no he isn’t an orphan, Blades. He’s from the wilds.”

The four mechs all shouted and backed away when Ratchet mentioned the wilds. A white and orange-red mech with orange optic covers looked over Ratchet’s shoulder. “You’re telling us that the sparkling crawled all the way here to see you?”

“Uh, no,” Mirage stepped in and pointed to the two clan mechs behind them. They turned and looked back at the ex-noble, “we brought him here. Ratchet, you spoke about a gestalt. Are you saying that First Aid is one of them? But, how?”

Flatline walked closer to Mirage and held up the bags, “I _need_ to upgrade him.” Mirage looked over at Ratchet and told him what he had said.

“Oh, yes that would help strengthen his spark.” Ratchet nodded and stepped aside, and Flatline hurried inside. Hound moved closer to Mirage to not stand out anymore than he already did. He dipped his helm and whispered softly.

The Iaconian’s optics widened and he started laughing into his servo. The others looked at him in confusion, “sorry Hound said that he doesn’t like the smell of the hospital.”

“Yes, well we are surrounded by the weak and the sick. But I believe that First Aid is indeed a member of a gestalt, specifically this one. You had mentioned him talking about a large mech, well Streetwise had come in a few solar cycles ago complaining about spark pains.” Ratchet explained to Mirage and he translated to Hound.

The others looked at the guilty looking enforcer, Hot Spot questioned him. “Is this true Street? Why didn’t you tell any of us? Are any of you experiencing the same?” He looked at the others and Blades avoided optic contact. “Blades?”

“Okay fine! I was having memory refluxes that weren’t mine, but I thought it was from one of you or it was a hint that I needed to lay off the high grade!” The mech shouted and threw his arms in the air.

“First Aid… stays home?” Hound finally tried to speak to Ratchet. “He can’t stay… in outlands. Dangerous.”

Ratchet gestured at the Protectobots as he tried to explain to the next Father. “He needs to stay here. His spark needs them.”

“No, Aid comes home. Inamorata… clan needs. Läakäri.” Hound clenched his servos and was becoming protective. Which triggered the Protectobots which only set Hound off more. Mirage waved his servos and stepped in front of the mech. The green mech pointed at them with a growl in his words. “They’re going to take him away from us.”

“No, Hound they won’t. Ratchet knows better than to take away a youngling from their creators. I need you to calm down, we can figure out a compromise. Okay?” Mirage gently pushed Hound’s servo down back to his side. He looked at the mechs behind him, “you have to understand that First Aid’s Carrier lost a sparkling to the same ailment that First Aid is suffering from. We promised to bring him back once he is better and the rains have passed. You’re not going to take him away from his family are you?”

Ratchet quickly shot that fear down, “no most definitely not. I will say that once these idiots agree to donating some spark energy, First Aid will feel much better and won’t need anything from them until he is older. I do have to warn you that it will cause some side effects from them being separated. He will have to make a decision when he is an adult; either come here and form a permanent and stable bond with his gestalt or come here and I can preform a risky surgery that will sever him from them.”

Mirage gave a condensed version of what Ratchet had said to Hound. The next Father looked down trying to figure out what to do before looking up and pointing to them. “They come?”

“No way, our duty is to Iacon.” Hot Spot stubbornly said before looking at Ratchet. “I will not bond to a sparkling Ratchet and that is final. What are the side effects of severing the connection?”

The others, excluding Hound, all stared at the mech in disbelief of the question. “Well you all will experience a sense of not being complete, depression, in some cases suicide, spark flares, and in some extreme cases ending up in a coma.”

There was a sound coming from the room and Hound quickly went inside to see his brother stirring. First Aid was now a first stage youngling and had a lot of installments that were integrating into his new systems. “Frér? First Aid, how are you little brother?”

“I… I… s-saaaaawww big bot again.” He smiled at the happy memory before looking around with confusion. “We are not h-home?”

Hound shook his helm with a smile, “No remember we left for the outlands. Flatline even upgraded you. How do you feel?”

“Tired. Mirage is scared. Why?” The new youngling sat up with his tiny servos rubbing his optics. He looked around before sniffling and started crying when he felt more fields overwhelming him. “Hound, I want C-Carrier. Too m-many!”

The green mech sat beside him and pulled him in a hug. “I know you do Aid, but we have to stay here until the outlander Läakäri says you can come home. Aid when you recharge, do you remember anything weird that?”

“Blinking stars and sometimes I can feel fields that are not from the clan.” First Aid answered before the door opened and they looked up to see Ratchet and Mirage pushing the mechs inside. They all protested until they saw the youngling kneeling on the large berth. He had a rainbow of crystals hanging from his neck and a black outline of a triangle painted on his chest. “Big bot! Oh… you are mad.”

The outlanders looked at the youngling with confusion. Mirage looked at them and translated, “he seems to recognize you and he is very field sensitive.” He looked down at the youngling as he crawled to the end of the berth. “Well aren’t you strong already!”

“Mimi!” He tried to stand and pounce the older mech, but his legs were still too weak. Mirage quickly caught him and lifted him up in his arms. First Aid’s mask retracted to show his big grin, “thank y-you.”

“You are welcome First Aid, come here there are some bots you need to meet. They’re going to make you better.” He walks over to the mechs, “Protectobots this is First Aid. First Aid these are the Protectobots.” He spoke in the respective languages for them.

First Aid closed his mouthguard and reached out for Hot Spot but stopped and turned away with a whimper. “Angry field. Did I make him mad a-at me?”

Ratchet looked at Flatline and did the same sign that he had done to Mirage before transferring the language packet. The older mech perked up and nodded before going beside them and held out the youngling’s left wrist. He tapped it until a small cable appeared and Ratchet connected them until he disconnected from the youngling. “There, can you understand youngling?”

“Mhm.” He nodded after a bit. First Aid looked at the medic and then at his plating, “you are colored like me.”

Hound was silently watching the conversation. He didn’t like the way they were hurting his brother, but he also knew he was going to have to keep himself calm to prevent anything from happening. “Aid, he is a Läakäri like you will be when you come of age.”

First Aid perked up again at what his brother said, and he looked back at the medic. “Outlanders have Läakäris too?! Ooh owie, owie.” He grabbed at his chest as Blades and Streetwise grabbed their chests. Once it subsided, First Aid looked at them with a hidden frown. “Mimi, why did the outlanders hurt when I hurt?”

“Remember that story I told you about the outlands? How there were giant bots? Well you and them can possibly make one of these giant bots. They’re called titans.” Mirage explained calmly for the youngling that was staring at the older mechs. “Aid, you’re all very sick and the only way you can get better is if they give you a bit of their spark energy, but they don’t like that.”

Two of the Protectobots got offended by the ex-noble, but First Aid looked at Flatline and Hound for clarification and they both nodded. The small white and red youngling looked at them with his servo touched the invisible fields. “You are scared. Am I scary?”

“No, we don’t want to form a connection with a youngling. You are too young.” Hot Spot answered for his team.

“A connection like Carrier and Sire? But… we’re sick… I don’t wanna be sick.” First Aid looked down with sadness in his field.

Flatline tapped Mirage’s arm, getting his attention, “we place a block on a sparkling’s spark until they are in they reach their teen frame. They won’t form a bond.”

“Flatline says they put blocks on their sparks to prevent any bonding. They stay on until they are teens.” Mirage explained to them. “You’re literally called the ‘_Protect_obots’ and you would let a youngling deactivate because you refuse to give him the only thing you all need?”

“He does have a point Hot Spot.” Streetwise said to his leader before looking at Ratchet, “I’ll do it.”

Mirage looked at the others and Blades and the other mech both stepped beside their teammate. “Groove and I agree too. There’s only room for one stingy mech and I claimed that first.”

“Fine, fine, fine! We’ll donate, but that’s it. Defensor will be fine without him.” Hot Spot was continuing his stubborn streak.

Blades threw an arm in the direction of First Aid, “he is an arm! Defensor is _literally_ missing an arm Hot Spot! Do you know how awkward it is to move rubble!?” First Aid recoiled away from the field.

“How sensitive is his field? All my functioning as a medic I have never met someone so sensitive.” Ratchet was curious as he moved a servo in First Aid’s personal space. He shook his helm and went back into his professional persona. “I need to start the procedure, Mirage you and Hound will need to leave. Your medic can stay and help if neither of them feel safe leaving First Aid here.”

Mirage translated and the green mech went to tell him off before Flatline reminded him that First Aid needed this. He nodded with great reluctance and followed Mirage out into the hall. They stood out in the hall and Mirage was pulled into a crushing hug. “Oof. Hound, y-you’re crushing me. I’ve known Ratchet all my life and you know Flatline. They’ll both make sure he’s safe.”

“First Inferno and now… now hearing that Aid… I don’t- Raj what if he wants to go with them?” Hound whimpered and hid his face in Mirage’s neck. Mirage hugged him back with a comforting sound. He knew it was hard for him to understand why anyone would leave the freedom of the wilds for a place like the city, but Mirage understood.

The mech pulled Hound away to look him in his optics, “I know it’s hard too understand Hound, but try to look at it from Inferno’s perspective. He bonded with someone from here and if he had wanted to return to the clan, don’t you think he would have as soon as freedom presented itself to him? And Ratchet said First Aid can stay with the clan until he’s an adult and make his own decision. You welcomed Inferno back to the clan, why not the same treatment as the mechs that can save your brother?” Mirage grabbed Hound’s servo and placed it on his chest, “I was willing to leave everything I knew to be with you. What if I couldn’t leave the city because of some medical reason, would you move to the city to be with me?”

Hound nodded his helm and pulled his face away, “of course I would Raj because I… I… you know.” Mirage heated up when he realized what Hound was about to say. “Do you think your Läakäri would make me download the language packet?”

“Well it would be easier to communicate, but he won’t unless you want too.” Mirage explained and laid his helm on his chest with a heavy ex-vent. “Aid will certainly have quite the tale to tell everyone.”

The next Father snorted, “on the bright side Sire will finally have a creation taller than him.”

Mirage laughed softly at the joke. They were looking at the map of the hospital and Mirage explained everything to Hound while they were passing the time. The pair even worked on teaching Hound more Neocybex before Ratchet caught their attention. “Ratchet, what happened? Are they okay?”

“Where is Läakäri?” Hound managed to ask clearly for the medic.

“If this ‘Läakäri’ means medic, then he is with First Aid and the others. It was successful, their spark resonances were all the same. They are all recharging, and First Aid will not need anything from them until he reaches adulthood. Wild frames are a lot more intense than I imagined, I may need to have him look at Inferno before you leave. Inferno needs a lot of maintenance, but he refuses to let me near him.” Ratchet explained to them, but mainly Mirage. “Are you going to be staying at Optimus and Elita’s? You know they would appreciate to see you before you run away again. How is that modification chip working?”

The ex-noble’s processor shorted out briefly when he felt the medic drone on. “I do plan on comming them before just appearing at their front door. And it is functioning fine, I can turn invisible. Ironic.” Hound patted his arm and started nodding back up the hall. Mirage nodded once he understood what he was hinting at. He looked at the medic, “Hound wants to know if he can go back to see First Aid.”

“Yes, but be quiet they are all recharging.” Ratchet reminded as he led them back to the room. He looked at Hound and spoke sternly, “you should inform his Carrier that he is okay.”

Hound got a couple of the words from the rough translation his processor made. “I will.” He tapped his comlink, getting an instant acceptance.

::Thank Primus, are you all okay? Is Aid okay? Did they figure out what was wrong? You guys only left yester-orn, how late did you all walk?:: Jazz’s stream of questions was interrupted by a firm stare from Ultra Magnus.

::We are fine Jazz. Aid is recharging right now. Their Läakäri found out that he is a part of something called a titan. And we walked until the first moon rose, and then walked before the suns even rose. First Aid’s condition forced us to move fast.:: Hound explained as he stood outside the door to look at the sight before him. The four mechs that didn’t want to be close to his brother prior, were now all surrounding him deep in stasis.

::Hound. Hound?:: Jazz’s voice shook him out of his thoughts. ::Hound, are you listening to me?::

::Huh? Sorry.:: The green mech apologized.

A sigh came from the other end. ::I said are you sure Aid is a titan? Combiners are about as rare as a white astrofox.::

::Yeah, there were four mechs that were also suffering from the same symptoms as Aid and Heatrock. This means another set of mechs are possibly suffering because of Heatrock’s deactivation.:: Hound felt bad for the mechs that were now suffering because of his brother. ::How come none of the others went through this?::

::Primus, I think I’m going to… I can’t… _ahem_, like I said Hound it’s really rare. Whoever carries the coding, it may possibly be me since no one has ever mentioned seeing titans in the wilds, it will only be passed on and show in the sparkling on occasion.:: Jazz tried to explain. ::I suppose I should be glad you all made it out of the forest as fast as you did, the rains have come in hard and you will have to wait until it passes before returning.::

Hound nodded before looking at Mirage reaching over Groove and covered First Aid carefully. His spark pulsed hard and his arousal spiked from just an innocent act. _Curse my senses._ ::We also found Inferno! But… he doesn’t want to leave the outlands. And the others… they… I’m sorry Jazz.::

::At least we know what happened to them. If Inferno doesn’t want to leave, then he has a good reason not to. We’ll hold a mourning for them when you all return. I have to go Hound, keep all of you safe and I love you.:: Jazz said hurriedly.

::Oh, okay. I will let them know. Love you too.:: Hound disconnected before being joined by Mirage. He wrapped his arms around the smaller frame and kissed his helm, purring when he felt the happiness spike in Mirage’s scent. The next Father pulled Mirage into a pair of empty chairs so they could rest after everything that happed. Mirage wrapped his arms around Hound’s with a tired ex-vent and rested his helm on the large arm, and Hound rested his helm on top of Mirage’s helm. Flatline watched them recharge before looking back at the monitor connected to First Aid.

“Flatline, it’s certainly a surprise to see you. I thought you refused to be a medic?” Ratchet stood beside the black mech while writing notes on his datapad. “Do any of them know?”

“I refused to be told who I can help Ratchet that’s why I faked my death and fled for the wilds. And only their leader and Läakäri know about my origins. The others believe I was from one of the other clans before they were slaughtered.” Flatline kept his tone calm and stoic, “after all we all have our secrets, isn’t that right Ratchet? First Aid will make an excellent medic, especially with his modification. All I can say is that if you want to convince the youngling to form a bond with these idiots, you’ll have to convince the clan he will be okay.”

The older medic looked at him with a slight frown, “and why do you want to help if you hate us so bad?”

The Läakäri returned the gaze before leaning in close to the older mech’s face. “Unlike the outlanders, the wilds never abandon those that need them.” He turned and shoved past the mech with his helm held up high.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Remember in the first chapter Hound mentioned Inferno, but he's not listed as a clans member? It's because after Mirage and Hound's bonding ceremony was cancelled the black market mechs decided to return to capturing them and selling them off. Inferno was one of them.


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mirage sees his family, First Aid struggles to understand why the outlanders like him can't go with them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In this chapter you'll find out a bit more about how Mirage's creators' deactivations affected him.

* * *

Ch. 12

The two recharging mechs both onlined to First Aid giggling and someone telling him to quiet down. Their optics onlined to the youngling playing Läakäri with Groove. He had his servo on the mech’s chest and looked a lot better than he did last night. Neither of them wanted to disturb the scene, but both were fully away the other was online.

“What are you doing?” The Protectobot asked curiously. “Don’t you need a stethoscope to hear for spark pulses?”

The youngling tilted his helm with his servo slowly going down. “Stethoscope? Can’t outlander Läakäris feel with their digits? My Carrier was an outlander like you, but then he met my Sire.”

The older mech chuckled, “a stethoscope is something medics use to listen to our sparks. I’m sorry for how Hot Spot treated you; you’re just so young. Can you understand why that makes us scared?”

First Aid put his servo down as he scooted closer to the older mech, “because my spark is small, but I feel like how frér feels with Mimi. Carrier says our sparks will do silly things because it feels it wants something.”

“You are very wise for a youngling. And you speak so clearly. It’s amazing.” He found it so fascinating to have an actual conversation with a wilds mech. “Do you live in trees or huts like schools have said?”

Before the excited youngling could say anything, Hound quickly made it known he was online. First Aid crawled over to the edge of the medical berth with excitement. “_Frér, Mirage you’re online! Flatline went with the Läakäri and the other mechs. When can I see Carrier and Sire_?”

“_The rains came First Aid; we have to wait until it’s stopped before going home. Do you want to go for a walk?_” Hound went over to the mechling and picked him up. First Aid cheered and nodded with excitement.

“_Hound, do you think that’s a good idea? He should adjust to his frame and upgrades._” Mirage insisted as calmly as possible. He knew that Hound didn’t like being cooped up, but he also knew that First Aid needed to be completely repaired before he could do anything extreme.

Groove looked at them before deciding it was his time to go. “I hate to cut this short, but I need to go.”

First Aid looked at the older mech with a hidden frown, “b-b-but I wanna play.”

“We can later, promise.” Groove smiled before leaving the room.

Hound started sniffing his brother’s neck. Getting a laugh from the youngling that was squirming around with giggles, “_H-Hound! No, stop, please it tickles!”_ Mirage was watching with a silent smile at how cute they were being until the door opened to show Flatline stepping in with energon crystals and a petite frame behind him.

The future Father saw the panic in Mirage’s frame and his quick activation of his modification. First Aid got excited when the black mech brought him a crystal. Mirage stuck to the corner while the femme stepped in. When his optics landed on the pink armor he just panicked and turned invisible. Hound knew where Mirage was, but he didn’t understand why he chose to hide. The green mech rose from the berth carefully, “hello.”

“Hello again Hound, it has been awhile. This must be the young mech that Ratchet told us about.” Mirage’s aunt, Elita-One, walked over to First Aid with a friendly smile. She held her servo out to the staring mech, “hello little one, I am Elita-One.”

First Aid looked at the servo and then at his brother. He didn’t know what he was supposed to do with her servo. Hound took First Aid’s servo and placed it in hers. The youngling looked at their servos curiously. “_Outlanders are weird_.” Hound facepalmed with a groan and Flatline hung his helm with a hard ex-vent. The white and red mechling moved to his knees and grabbed the slightly startled femme as he pressed their noses together. First Aid pulled away with a smile, “carrier says when we touch helms our processors trade knowledge. You’re sad and happy?”

Elita was a bit shocked by the youngling and she smiled slightly at him. “I’m sad that my nephew feels the need to hide from me still, but I’m happy to know that he is online and safe.”

First Aid tilted his helm with an innocent expression before it turned into a smile. “Nephew? Mimi is your nephew? Wow! That means you’re family! Mimi why are you playing hide and seek?”

Mirage reappeared with his back turned and arms crossed, “I am not playing hide and seek First Aid, I simply don’t wish to burden _her grace_ with my presence.” He left the room while reactivating his mod, but he remained near the door because to be honest it was nice to see her face again. Mirage peeked inside while he was listening to the others speak or well attempt to speak.

“Why did Mimi leave? Do outlanders not like each other?” First Aid looked at Elita as she sighed with disappointment.

“I hurt him, and he hasn’t forgiven me for my betrayal. I love him as if he was my own sparkling.” She looked at her servos with a sad expression. “When I found out he was leaving and wouldn’t come back, I felt like I lost the last thing that reminded me of my sister. After Ratchet commed me and said that he was here, in Iacon, I was so happy that I just left without telling anyone. To have my Mirage back even for just a moment so I could tell him how sorry I am for letting him feel he was alone.”

The invisible mech didn’t think as he rushed back in and hugged his aunt tightly. The pink femme was startled briefly before she realized what had pushed into her. She wrapped her arms around what she assumed were his shoulders. Mirage became visible again with his shoulders shaking. First Aid went to comfort the stressed fields, but Flatline and Hound stopped him with their servos on his smaller shoulders. Elita smiled as she squeezed him tighter. She lifted his helm to look him in his optics, she wiped away the tears that lined his optics. “I always thought your optics reminded me of hers. Mirage, I love you so much. I’m so sorry.”

Mirage sniffled and wiped his optics, “I… I realize that I wasn’t th-the easiest mech to be around. I’m sorry for being difficult.” He pulled away and stood beside Hound with their servos instantly wrapping around each other. The green mech pressed his helm against Mirage’s to comfort him further. “Can we stay at the manor until the rains are no longer hovering the forest? If it’s not too much, my apartment is too small for all three of us.”

Elita’s smile grew and nodded, “you are always welcome in our home Mirage. You and the clan. Your uncle will be excited to know that you are well. I will ask Ratchet when little First Aid can be released.”

Hound looked at Mirage, “_what are you two saying? I still do not understand outlander language_.”

“_We will be staying at my uncle’s while we wait for the rains to end._” Mirage explained before looking at Triage and gestured at First Aid, “_will he be okay in the city?_”

“_He will be okay as long as we thoroughly clean in the delta before entering the camp, to avoid exposing everyone to the outlands._” Flatline explained before looking at the youngling and placed his servo on his helm. “_First Aid, how is your spark? I also need you to try and expand your field outside this room and tell me the first emotion you feel.”_

The youngling whined at the instructions he was given. He crossed his arm with a pout, “_I wanna go play outside._” His optics landed on the femme that was talking to Mirage, catching her attention. “Can we go play? Do outlanders play with the Nosorons and cyberwolves?!”

Elita’s panicked expression was what caused Mirage to quickly explain. “Aunt, the mechanimals the clan raise are more or less domesticated and play with the sparklings and younglings.” He looked at the youngling with a pat on his helm. “Here in the outlands, Cybertronians don’t play with the mechanimals.”

“Woah really?! Outlander sparklings must not have fun then.” He put his servos on his knees and leaned forward slightly with his blue optics wide in amazement. “Papa Triage says that mechanimals were all created by Father Onyx even after he went flying in the sky. Brother is going to be the best Father, especially when he has Mimi to be his ‘namorata!”

Mirage tensed and quickly covered First Aid’s mouth as he laughed uncomfortably. “Woah there First Aid, that is grown up talk. You are still too young for that.”

“But, big brother’s field is hugging yours and he gets really funny when he’s with you. And you get silly too.” First Aid pulled himself onto his peds and giggled into his servo. “It’s like when Sire is with Carrier.”

Elita started laughing and Mirage was beyond embarrassed. Hound didn’t know what exactly was being said, but he could tell that his future Inamorata was uncomfortable, and he _had_ to intervene. “_Aid, whatever you are saying stop._”

Flatline picked up First Aid’s arm to get his attention. “_I will inform their Läakäri that you are fit to leave. And you will not over excite yourself. Understand young mech?_”

“_Yes Flatline,_” First Aid nodded as he sat back down with the bottoms of his peds touching. Mirage looked at Hound and then his aunt with uncertainty of what to do. The youngling grabbed his digit, catching his attention. “_Be with your family. Hound can play with me._”

Mirage nodded and hugged the youngling before wrapping an around his aunt’s arm. Hound sat on the berth beside First Aid as he looked up at the Läakäri with a slight frown. “_Flatline, where have you been? You smell like that Läakäri._”

“_Learning about the mechs that share the same spark as First Aid. Because of my transferring of our language to Mirage, I was able to gather a bit of their language. It also seems that the outlander Läakäri seems to know a bit of signing, so we were able to communicate._” Flatline lied smoothly. He didn’t find it important that he knew Neocybex because once they returned to the wilds then he would never have to see Ratchet’s ugly mug again.

Hound nodded in partial understanding, but he felt better knowing that he wasn’t going to stay with the outlanders. The green mech decided to push the negative thoughts away for the time being and spend time with his youngest brother. He scooped the squealing youngling into his arms and then lifted him onto his shoulders. “_Come on Aid, let’s go outside._”

“_Yay!_” The youngling cheered as they left his room with a much better attitude. Hound behaved until they made it outside and then he ran for poor excuse of a forest, which was just severely cut grass and a very small tree. First Aid frowned when his brother came to a steady stop. “_Frér, why do the outlanders destroy the forest?_”

“_I don’t know Aid; outlanders do strange things. Don’t worry though, we won’t let them take our home from us._” Hound sat his brother down with his servo going to the tree’s small trunk. The youngling did the same thing and put his forehelm against it. “_Hound, I want you and Mimi to be together. He really likes you._”

The green mech heated up and looked at his brother with a playful glare. “_You’re supposed to be a youngling trying to learn things. But, I like Raj too._”

Back inside the hospital, Mirage was standing in front of a window with Elita beside him. Neither of them said anything for a while until they both quickly looked at each and both talked over each other. They apologized and awkwardly chuckled when they tried to give the other a chance to talk. Mirage was quick to make the choice for them, “femmes first.”

Elita nodded with an uneasy smile, “you uh… you look good Mirage. Have they been treating you well?”

“Thanks, I feel a lot ahem a lot better. They’ve been treating me better than I believe I deserve, especially Hound, but I learned a lot from the clan. And you and uncle? How have you both been doing?” Mirage looked at the pink femme briefly making optic contact before looking back outside. He rubbed his wrist with awkwardness.

“We have been good; we were worried about you when you sent the holo video. I wish you had told me in person, but I understand that you felt you needed to do it. When did you start becoming invisible?” She teased him towards the end, getting a chuckle from her nephew.

“If I did that then I wouldn’t have had the strength to leave. As for the invisibility, I had it installed before I left.” Mirage folded an arm behind his back before chuckling slightly, “I’m sorry about First Aid. He’s a really friendly mechling.”

Elita smiled softly, “reminds me of a mech when he was his age.” Their optics locked for a moment before Mirage looked away with a frown. The pink femme took his servo quickly to get his attention again. “Mirage, please don’t pull away again. I know you miss them as much as we do, but you don’t need to feel like you’re alone anymore.”

The white and blue mech looked at his servo with a shaky ex-vent. He didn’t just miss them, he felt lost without his creators, like a part of him was missing because of them. “I don’t know what they would think of me if they saw how their son turned out. Sire tried to teach me that everyone deserves to be treated with kindness and respect, and then Carrier told me that everything happens for a reason. I wasn’t ready to lose them aunt. Why didn’t they get out? Why did they just stay in the house!?”

“I don’t know Mirage, I truly do not know, but I do know that they would be proud of you for wanting to correct your wrong. I bet they would have left the fire if they were able to. Your Sire and Carrier loved you very much, Mirage, remember that.” She cupped his face to give them both reassurance. “They would have understood you being scared to give your spark to someone unknown.”

Mirage looked down at his aunt with a blank expression before it softened out into a grateful smile. He hugged her after a moment of staring at her. “Thank you for that, I suppose having the idea of thinking that my creators are proud of me eases my spark.”

“Your Carrier would have loved to meet Hound, especially when he has taken such good care of you.” She cupped his chin with a grateful smile.

“He is such a gentlemech, very brave too, and is super kind.” Mirage smiled as he looked outside the window, “aunt Elita, I truly am sorry for the trouble I caused over the deci-vorns. I was mad at you and uncle for everything; as if being mad at you both would bring back Sire and Carrier. But, being out there… spending time with the clan, I realized that I can still be mad at the past or be happier for the future.”

Elita-One smiled and hugged her nephew once again, “you and Hound are-?”

The white and blue mech’s face heated up and he turned his helm slightly. “We… um… we talked about possibly courting again but courting him like how we would court would be hard to do. But I think I’m ready to attempt at a relationship.”

“Perhaps you should go on a walk with him, take him out for energon, or maybe show him around the city?” The femme suggested with a servo gesture and a smile.

“That could work. Would it be too bold to ask if maybe we could leave Flatline and First Aid at the manor tonight while I take Hound for a walk in the back fields?” He asked her.

That got the femme grin excitedly, “of course!” Later in the mid-cycle, Hound was letting First Aid rest up while Elita was chatting with Mirage and Hound. She knew that Hound didn’t know entirely what was being said to him, but he seemed to be enjoying it from what she could tell. “So, is it just you and this little cutie?”

Hound shook his helm with a smile, “no there are eight total.” He look at Mirage with a guilty expression.

“Eight, wow! You must not get bored with so many around.” She laughed before putting a servo on Hound’s knee. “Do you have any questions for me before I chat your helm off?”

Mirage translated and Hound scratched the back of his helm with uncertainty. The mech lowered his servo as he looked at Mirage with his digits twitching nervously. He looked at Elita as he tried to speak his mind to her and not to Mirage for him to translate it. “Mirage fears being alone. Not alone now.”

Mirage looked at the green mech with wide optics, “Hound.”

“You’re right Hound. Knowing you will be by his side; my Mirage will never have to feel alone again.” Elita smiled and took Hound’s servo. The door into the room opened, revealing Hot Spot entering with caution. “Oh, Hot Spot, what are you doing here? How’s the rest of the team?”

He looked at the Prime’s mate as he entered the room, “I came to see the kid and tell him goodbye. The team is doing decent now that we found our last member.” Hot Spot gestured at the recharging youngling before looking at the white and blue mech. “Look I’m sorry, but he’s young and who knows he might not want to be a part of our team once he grows up.”

The mech nodded in understanding what he was talking about. There was sniffling from the berth. They looked over to see First Aid looking at Hot Spot with tears welling under his optics and his intakes were being drawn in harder and faster. “Y-You d-don’t w-w-want m-e-e-e? Cause n-not o-o-outland-der.” He covered his optics and started crying into his servos which caused Hound to rush over to him and pull him into his arms. The youngling hid in his brother’s frame while crying harder. “_I wanna go home._”

“First Aid, that’s not what I’m saying, ah Primus how do I explain this? First Aid, you have to understand that we have a dangerous job and you won’t be able to help us with it when you’re still a youngling.” Hot Spot could handle fires and chasing down criminals, pits even buildings crumbling down on them, but a crying youngling only stressed him out more. “And you not being an outlander, whatever that is, but it’s because you’re too young to help until you’re bigger.”

The youngling peeked out from his brother’s arm as tears were still falling from his optics. “You can be with us at home.”

“We can’t First Aid, our duty is to Iacon and it will always be to Iacon.” Hot Spot gestured around the room to emphasize his meaning. First Aid whined and started bouncing with a tantrum ensuing.

Elita decided to speak in a manner that she spoke to Mirage when he was younger. She lowered to the youngling’s level with a gentle smile as she took his tiny servos. “First Aid dear, isn’t saying none of you can see each other at all, but they have to stay here and protect our people. Perhaps when you are older you can come here. There’s no need to cry okay?”

“I can see my spark friends when I’m big like Hound?” His light blue optics looked into Elita’s with his tears finally drying. Both Elita and Hot Spot nodded which lightened the youngling’s mood rapidly. He looked at his brother with his helm nuzzling his frame. “_Will Sire let me play with my spark friends?_”

“_That is something you have to ask Sire._” Hound put his servo on his helm. He looked at Mirage with a questioning look, “we can leave now?”

Mirage looked at his aunt for an answer. She shrugged with a shake of her helm, “I don’t see why not. Ratchet said he is better. Hot Spot, perhaps you and the others can visit the manor tomorrow mid-cycle for energon?”

“I will let the others know, thank you for your offer ma’am.” He dipped his helm before his comlink pulled his attention. The steel blue mech responded with a few nods and ‘mhm’s. The leader of the Protectobots looked at the small group, “there’s an emergency in the market district. I have to go, have a good cycle.”

First Aid smiled and waved bye to the retreating mech. Flatline returned with Ratchet and they were discharged from the hospital. Hound was eager to leave the building with his brother in his arms to say the least. Mirage was amused by Hound’s eagerness, “_smells getting to you?_”

“_Smells too clean._” Hound complained as he blocked his nose with First Aid’s helm. “_I still do not like the smell of the outlands._”

Mirage looked at the next Father with a sympathetic smile, “don’t worry Hound we can explore my uncle’s property tonight if you’d like.”

“I’ll see you at the manor Mirage.” Elita kissed her nephew’s cheek before transforming and drove for the manor. Flatline followed the pair from a respective distance and looked around to see what changed since the last time he had been in the city. The Läakäri didn’t grow up in Iacon, his spark place was Nova Cronum, but when he went to medical school he went to Iacon.

First Aid looked around with amazement at the lights and the busy life of the outlanders. “_Mimi, is this where you came from?_” Mirage nodded before pointing at a large statue far off in the distance.

“_That is a statue of all of the Primes, or Fathers, before my uncle. When my uncle deactivates he’ll be added to it._” The ex-noble told the youngling which seemed to excite him as he pointed to a building with a silent questioning look. “_That’s a café; bots will get flavored energon or treats._”

“_Treats? Like berries!? Can we get some?” _First Aid excitedly while bouncing in Hound’s arms with excitement. Mirage shrugged and gestured to Hound which got the youngling to quickly look up at his brother. “_Can we frér?_”

“_I… I don’t know Aid, if you get some then that would mean bringing more to the clan_.” Hound explained to his brother as they crossed the street. He looked at Flatline with a curious expression, “_Flatline are you able to get ahold of any of the clan?_”

“_Not clearly, but if they needed us then they would let us know._” Flatline assured the mech as they continued their stroll. Mirage took Hound’s servo, getting the green mech to smile at the comforting gesture. The Läakäri was glad that the future Father found his mate after so long. Triage and Flatline had talked about if Hound and Mirage would be more responsible than the current Father and Inamorata. Flatline believed that Mirage would force Hound to wait a long while before blessing the clan with a sparkling. Triage thinks that with how Hound acts with heat cycles in general he would most certainly get possibly a few sparklings.

Seeing how the two act around and towards each other, Flatline could see that the pair could lead the clan into greatness. Mirage explained the different things to them whenever they passed something that caused the green mech to ask something. First Aid was yawning again which caused Mirage to look at the black mech with concern. “_Is it normal for them to be so tired?_”

“_From sparkling to youngling, yes. He will tired for at least another solar cycle. We usually give them a solid energon crystal for them to fuel while they are recovering._” Flatline explained while touching the small red helm. “_Little Aid, what are your fuel levels?_”

“_Not hungry._” He held onto his brother while looking around with his chin resting on his shoulder. “_Mimi, I’m glad you love my brother.”_

Mirage’s engines stalled for an astro-second before the words registered in his processor and he heated up. He looked at his and Hound’s connected servos and then at the youngling with a smile. The white and blue mech pressed against the dark green mech. Mirage didn’t know if he was ready to say the ‘L-word’, but he was glad to know that a youngling knew what he was feeling. When Hound heard what First Aid had said he heated up as his spark swelled at the mention of Mirage loving him. He didn’t say anything as he silently watch Mirage finally reply to First Aid.

“_So am I First Aid. So am I._”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Should I italicized the clan language to avoid confusion between them? Next chapter will be date night and a bit of getting down and dirty (if you catch my drift lol).


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mirage and Optimus have a talk, First Aid continues to be a sweet innocent mechling, and Hound teaches the outlanders a few things. Oh, Mirage and Hound make out for a bit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Should I do the prequel or sequel after this one?

* * *

Ch. 13

First Aid looked around in amazement at how big the Prime estate was. The youngling had never seen anything so huge or bright, but that wasn’t what excited him it was the slightly large trees that the youngling could learn how to climb for the first time. “Mimi, you lived here!? This is amazing and it’s as big as home!”

Mirage chuckled with a small nod towards the manor, “I did for a long time yes. If you think it’s bigger just wait until you see the inside.”

“Now Aid we’re going to be meeting Raj’s uncle, so you have to behave yourself and be polite okay?” Hound reminded the youngling, but First Aid was too busy being awestruck by the new environment. “Someone’s helm is stuck in the clouds.”

“Don’t worry Hound, I’m sure First Aid will be too amazed to really get into any trouble.” Mirage teased the both of them before the doors to his uncle’s manor were thrown open and there stood his aunt and uncle along with a white and red Polyhexian, Inferno, and Prowl. First Aid’s jaw dropped when his optics landed on Mirage’s uncle which caused the mech to laugh.

Flatline offered to take the youngling while his Future Father and Inamorata went to greet his family. First Aid pointed Inferno and ran for him and was caught by the lunging frame. The youngling didn’t remember the red mech a whole lot, but he knew he was clan and clan was always there for each other.

“Inferno, put that youngling down! They need to be screened first!” The Polyhexian had that look of disgust that Mirage recognized all too well.

The fire engine red mech nuzzled the purring youngling, “_hello again little Aid. You have grown a lot since I last saw you. I remember when you were introduced to the clan._”

“Inferno, we can’t understand you. You’re breaking protocol.” The Polyhexian was panicking, but Elita put a servo on his shoulder. “Elita, I designed this system to prevent anything and he’s breaking every protocol.”

“Red Alert, can’t you see that he misses his family?” She spoke softly to him.

Mirage looked up at Optimus just like how the Prime was looking down at him. They said nothing before Mirage looked away with an arm hugging himself. Optimus got a silent gesture from not only his mate but also Prowl to talk to his nephew. “Mirage,” he figured he’d start with his name, immediately getting his attention, “I should apologize for how I treated you as well as handled the situation in regards to the treaty. I should have made you more involved with everything and been more supportive of you. I’m also relieved to know that you are online and safe.”

“And I should apologize for being uncooperative.” Mirage apologized but refused to look his uncle in the optics. “Being with Hound and the clan taught me a lot about myself in the deca-cycle I was there. I was mad at the bots that set my family’s home on fire and I took that anger out on everyone else.”

Hound tapped Mirage’s arm, “_the deal with my Sire._”

“Why don’t we take the conversation to the lounge?” Prowl offered.

Inferno looked at Hound with a hopeful look, “_can I show First Aid the property? I promise to keep him safe._”

“_Mm… m’kay, but he may get tired because he’s still adjusting to his frame._” Hound told the mech with a smile which got First Aid to cheer excitedly. Inferno pulled his mate along, despite his clear protests about security. Hound looked at Flatline with a questioning gaze, “_did you want to stay or go with them?_”

“_I should come with. First Aid will be fine._” The black mech answered with a tap on his wrist.

Mirage took Hound’s servo and the three of them followed his uncle into the lounge. The white and blue mech stopped in the doorframe, remembering the last time he was in the room with Hound and how terrible he had treated him. Hound smelt the sadness filling up his future Inamorata, and he leaned in close to his neck. “_I am here. It’s okay Raj._”

The mech nodded and pointed to the two chairs that were near the fireplace. Hound reluctantly let go of his servo and sat in one of the chairs with Flatline sitting in the other one. The next Father could tell Mirage was still tense, and he couldn’t focus on the question that was being asked when his optics were focused on the pacing mech. Flatline swiftly smacked Hound on the back of the helm and Hound shouted in pain. “_You’re being rude. They are asking you a question._”

“Mirage, dear perhaps join in the conversation. Poor Hound’s neck cables might tighten.” Elita teased the green mech. Mirage went to sit beside Prowl, but Hound was fast in pulling him into his lap which caused the mech to shout with his face heating up with embarrassment.

“H-H-Hound l-let me go! You can’t just hold me like this i-i-in front of my family!” Mirage’s face plate heated up as he covered his face. Any other time, Mirage would be smiling and possibly leaning against the mech, but with so many seeing him like this it was embarrassing.

“Smell… happy.” Hound tightened his hold around the waist while burying his face in Mirage’s back.

Mirage continued his struggling and tried to pull away. “Just because I _smell_ one way doesn’t mean this appropriate for the situation! Primus what are you? Part apeoid?” The mech was trying to pry the arms off of his waist, but it only made Hound hold tighter. The others found it amusing and Mirage mockingly laughed after giving up the struggle. “Laugh it up, you all chose to let this happen.”

“Mirage, you could have avoided it if you weren’t as antsy as Red Alert.” Optimus said before looking at the three mechs with his chin resting on the backs of his servos. “As you may have heard, Inferno did come from the wilds. We had hoped that the black market would be dissuaded by the idea of the wilds, but we were clearly wrong. Prowl had heard rumors of the market getting… a new stock and he went to investigate. We were sadly too late, many of them were offline when we arrived, offlined on the way to the hospital, or if they did make it to the hospital they… took their lives.”

“What made Inferno different? He said he bonded to your new security director.” Mirage looked at his aunt and uncle after translating for the clan members.

Prowl chose to respond, “Red Alert said it was like his spark was calling for Inferno. He was one of the only ones to survive a suicide attempt.”

“Were there more? Did you save anymore?” Mirage caught onto the phrasing of what his old guardian said. “We need all of the frames, they belong to the clan, Uncle.”

Hound caught onto bits and pieces of the conversation, and he nodded in agreement with Mirage. “Clan needs mourning.”

“We have them in cryopods in the morgue, we didn’t know what to do with them without further disrespecting your ways.” Optimus told the next Father. “There is one more that we managed to save, but he’s been on a lot drugs but he…. He doesn’t look right. Did your clan have someone name Preceptor?”

The two clan members looked at the Prime with equal confusion. Flatline decided to speak, “no member with name. See him?”

“We’ll have to speak to Ratchet about that, because he’s under strict supervision.” Prowl answered. “We’ve also taken note on the amount of disappearances that have been piling up, their last known whereabouts were going to the wilds.”

Mirage rubbed the back of his helm, “well they haven’t been the nicest of bots. We’ve only taken out five bots, any others we haven’t seen, but the wilds are a large area not to mention we aren’t the only ones living there.”

“As much as I disapprove of bots being sold off in slavery, I don’t approve of bots being needlessly murdered.” Optimus told his nephew who nodded solemnly.

“I noticed that you said we twice.” Elita pointed out with a smile. Mirage nodded with a shy smile.

“Well I thought it was the most appropriate adjective seeing as Hound and I plan on bonding.” Mirage felt Hound nuzzle his face against his back which meant that the green mech caught onto some of what he had said.

Hound pulled away to look Optimus with a questioning gaze. “Outlander bonding ceremony?” He looked at Mirage, “_how are they different? From clan ceremony?_”

Mirage repeated the rest of the question for his uncle’s sake. Optimus sat up straight with a hum and stood up before going over to one of the shelves and returned with a large holoimage. He held it out for them; it was of him and Elita standing at an altar of crystals, Optimus had a sigil marking on his chest and then Elita held a bouquet of crystals and had a sigil on her chest. Mirage took it and showed it to Hound, the green mech touched the sigils in the image and then looked at Mirage.

“_The one on him says mate of honor and hers says mate of courage. The sigils are painted on by each other and are a quality that the other likes about them._” Mirage explained to him before looking at it with a sad sigh.

“_What was your creators’?_” Hound questioned but Mirage shrugged with a shake of his helm. The green mech looked at Elita, “Mirage creators’?”

The femme took a nano-minute to figure out what he was meaning before it clicked. “Oh, their sigils? Mirage’s Carrier had mate of beauty and his Sire had mate of intelligence.” Mirage translated while trying to not cry.

“How does the clan perform bonding ceremonies?” Optimus asked.

Hound perked up and finally released Mirage, he looked around before deciding to go with the only empty wall near the closed doors of lounge. A hologram started building up, it was of the large tree that Mirage remembered Jazz telling him that a lot of the clan’s ceremonies. It had Jazz and Ultra Magnus were in front of it, both of them were decorated in gold, silver, and burgundy markings, they had their crystal necklaces, and then their sparks were out of their chests and were being brought together while being shielded in their servos.

Mirage stared at it with his optics staring fear and also admiration. He knew if they did that in the city, it just asked for an assassination. “_You bond in front of the clan?_”

Hound nodded with a big smile he made sounds of uncertainty before he looked at his future mate’s aunt and uncle. He brought his servos together, “unity. Trust. Uhh… umm… in front of clan to show Father and…. Inamorata trust clan by showing spark.” He looked at Mirage for his thoughts. “_Make sense?”_

“_So, by merging our sparks in front of the clan we show the clan that we trust them to see our vulnerable parts?_” Mirage repeated for clarification and both of the clan mechs nodded. The ex-noble explained for the others. Hound turned off his hologram before returning to his original spot with a smile on his face. “Tonight, is it okay if we leave First Aid while Hound and I go for a walk? We’ll make sure that he’s in stasis before heading out.”

“I’m fine with that. He certainly reminds me of you when you were younger.” Optimus gave his okay and got his nephew to smile with a dip of his helm. “So, your aunt told me that First Aid is a part of Hot Spot’s team? Does the clan have combiners?”

Mirage shook his helm, “no they’ve never heard about it before. But Jazz had a son that was in the same situation as First Aid, but nobody knew what was happening and he… deactivated.”

“I am so sorry, that’s a terrible way to lose someone. Well you brought him just in time. Hot Spot is a good mech, very honorable.” Optimus looked at the three before First Aid ran through while laughing without a care in the world. The youngling went for Flatline while his fans went off. Inferno and Red Alert entered, one was smiling and the other was frowning. “And how was the walk?”

“It was fun, I missed the freedom the younglings have. In the clan, the younglings learn about responsibility by helping us around the camp.” Inferno smiled before putting his servo on the Polyhexian’s back. “Clan protects clan.”

First Aid looked up at the adults with a smile in his optics. “_Hound, I’m hungry. Can I hunt with you?_”

“_Aid, they don’t hunt like we do at home._” Hound shook his helm and looked at Optimus with a questioning gaze. “Aid hungry.”

“Oh, we can have-”

“Already sent a private message to the kitchen.” Prowl informed everyone before looking at Mirage with his wings twitching. “I do have some energon gels that I can give First Aid. If Hound is okay for him to have it?”

Mirage looked at Hound and repeated for him, Hound didn’t know what it was but the Iaconian assured they weren’t going to hurt him. Hound nodded in a hesitant approval. Prowl pulled a small box out of his subspace which got the youngest mech to stare at it in amazement. He gasped and pointed at the Praxian on before pointing at Mirage while sputtering at the waiting mech.

“His satchel’s inside him, Mimi!” First Aid went over to the Praxian and Prowl was uncomfortable with the youngling getting so close to his subspace.

“First Aid, don’t do that. That’s rude.” Mirage told the youngling and saw the realization on his face. First Aid ducked his helm as he stepped out of Prowl’s space.

Inferno explained for the others, “we don’t have subspaces. Uses energon. I remember when the Inamorata had his first creation, he had the Läakäri remove it.”

_It can be removed?_ Mirage silently looked at Flatline before everyone watched First Aid open his mask and took one of the tiny cubes out of the box and slurped it in his mouth. The youngling perked up with a smile on his face before it disappeared behind his mask closing up again. “_First Aid, why do you have a mask?_”

The youngling looked up at him with a tilt of his helm. “_Air makes me sick._”

“_Air makes you sick?_” Mirage looked at Flatline.

The Läakäri tapped his wrist and held a hologram screen in front the youngling. It showed a scan of the youngling’s systems; the black mech pointed to the intakes and roughly spoke for the outlanders since Hound knew what was wrong. “Highly sensitive to… argon.”

“Argon is thirty-five percent of Cybertron’s atmosphere since the development of Velocity during Nova Prime’s reign.” Prowl looked at Optimus and Elita.

Red Alert stood up and left to room, everyone stopped their conversation watching the mech return with teal and white mech with Seeker wings walking behind him. “Optimus Prime, your… eight cycle meeting has arrived five cycles early.” The Polyhexian glared at the mech, “which is _completely _against protocol!”

“Down Red Alert, I commed Brainstorm to come over whenever he could pull away from his lab.” The Prime stood up and went over to the Seeker, extending his servo to the mech. “Brainstorm, you remember my mate Elita. And this is Mirage, my nephew. Hound, the next leader of the wilds clan, Flatline, one of their medics, and the youngling is First Aid, Hound’s youngest brother.” Mirage didn’t bother in correcting his uncle in the correct titles.

“The infamous nephew of the Lord Prime, what an honor to be in the same room as you. And wild mechs, are you collecting now?” The Seeker laughed, but nobody not even inferno was laughing with him. The Seeker cleared his voice box, realizing the poor joke, “my apologies that was in poor taste.”

First Aid stopped eating the gels and looked up at Brainstorm before his optics landed on the strange thing in his servo. “S’that?”

“This?” Brainstorm held the case closer to his side and placed a digit to his lips. “A secret only the Lord Prime can see.”

“What’s a Lord? Is Op’mus sick?” First Aid looked at Optimus and touched his chest plate.

Optimus chuckled and shook his helm, “no a ‘Lord’ is just a title for someone with a lot of power. Like your Sire would be a Lord here.”

“Oh, so you’re not sick?” The youngling dropped his servo when the taller mech shook his helm once again. When First Aid got his reassurance, he was happy again. “Can I go explore?”

The Prime and his mate both nodded, “Prowl can go with you.”

“I want Inferno’s friend. He reminds me of Sire’s friend Apelinq.” First Aid said innocently, but Mirage bursted out laughing which confused the others.

“_Raj?_” Hound asked with confusion. Mirage was too busy laughing and crying from how hard he was laughing. First Aid decided to repeat what he said for his brother, and the green did think it as a little funny, but not enough to end up in the state Mirage was in. “_I don’t get it Raj_.”

Mirage finally calmed himself long enough to answer, “_just imagining Apelinq being nice._”

This time Flatline snorted which further confused Hound as he always had friendly conversations with the mech. Optimus excused himself and Brainstorm for their meeting, Red Alert was forced to go with Inferno and First Aid while the took him to explore the manor, Prowl went to tell the staff to put some energon in a few room, and Hound followed Mirage out to the back terrace. Mirage looked up at Hound with a smile.

“You smell delicious again.” Hound leaned into his neck and licked him, drawing a long gasp from him. “I want to chase you, Raj.”

“H-Hound we’re out in the open. Calm yourself.” Mirage was okay with giving up most things, but extreme PDA was a big no-no for him.

“Let me chase you, please.” Hound begged with his servos holding Mirage’s hips firmly. Mirage looked around nervously and the green mech pressed his nasal ridge against Mirage’s. “What’s wrong?”

The ex-noble looked around and sighed in defeat, “I’ve never interfaced before. I’ve never self-serviced either.” Hound’s optics widened before he chuckled briefly. Mirage gawked and smacked Hound’s shoulder, “why are you laughing at me?”

Hound shook his helm, “no you misunderstand Raj. It explains why you are so uptight and agitated. You’ve never overloaded. You were close that time I was smelling you, weren’t you?”

“I suppose,” the shorter mech softly said. The green mech kissed his cheek plate softly.

“I won’t do anything you don’t want to Raj, when have I ever lied to you?” Hound looked down at him with his servos going to his helm. Mirage glanced to the field and then up at the green mech. “just a chase.”

The Iaconian tilted his helm down with a silent thought before looking up at him. “Can you do what you did before? But not here, I know a secluded spot.”

The green mech grinned before sniffing his neck one more time, “fresh scent. I’ll give you a head start.”

“What a gentlemech.” Mirage teased before turning and ran away, looking over briefly and saw that Hound was just casually walking for the mech. He knew that the green mech was giving him a sense of false hope before he pounced. The white and blue mech led them to the further point of the field where a shooting range was. It was rarely used except when the twins came to visit with their trainer, or his uncle had to entertain guests. When Mirage wrapped his servo around the handle of the building, he felt a full grown mech’s frame press himself against the door, successfully pinning him. Hearing Hound’s chuckle near his receptor caused Mirage’s body to feel something.

“You certainly have gotten faster Raj, but I’m faster than you.” Hound’s heated ex-vents danced in Mirage’s neck cable caused him to shiver with small groan. “Open it so I can smell you all over.”

Mirage pushed open the door before he was nearly shoved into the rectangular shed. The sound of the door was enough to cause him to turn around face the next Father. His optics looked up at Hound with a bashful gaze, “Hound, can I ask you a question?” The green mech stopped his pursuit, his helm tilted slightly, and his optics looked at Mirage with a bit of curiosity. “Have you ever… umm… interfaced? It’s just you seem very experienced, not that I’m mad or anything I just-”

Hound quickly covered Mirage’s mouth and heated up slightly. “No, I haven’t actually interfaced, but I’ve self-serviced before. We don’t interface before bonding, which is why we take a lot of precautions to prevent overpopulation.”

Mirage nodded with a relieved smile. He was honest when he said he wasn’t going to be mad if Hound did interface but knowing that they had similar traditions in bonding and interfacing it made him feel better. His face started heating up again, “this may be very bold of me to ask, but um… can I see it?” The green mech looked at Mirage with some confusion which further embarrassed the mech. “Um… your equipment.”

Hound’s face changed into a look of shock at the request. “Wh-Why do you want to... _ahem_… see that?” He crossed and uncrossed his arms while coughing several times with his face literally turning red from how heated up he got.

“W-Well I mean I’m going to be seeing it anyways. And I mean it’s only fair since you saw my…_ ahem_… valve.” Mirage covered the lower half of his face to hide the fact that he was smiling from embarrassment as well as being so provocative, well in his opinion he still hadn’t swore more than three different times during his time in the forest.

Hound took a cautious look around before hopping on the counter and opened his legs slightly. “I do want to tell you that we are built differently.” Mirage nodded slightly as he went over to Hound but was just out of the green mech’s reach. Hound looked to either side of him with an embarrassed chuckle. “Um… I need help getting eh aroused.”

The ex-noble squeaked at how forward Hound was being again. “H-How?”

“Can we touch each other?” He looked at him with a questioning gaze. Mirage moved in reach of him and put his servos on the larger mech’s knee. The mechs wrapped their arms around the other while they awkwardly leaned in for a kiss. Their lips barely grazed before Mirage was lifted onto Hound’s lap. He yelped in shock by the sudden action.

“H-Hound this will break under us.” The white and blue mech looked behind them with worry before a loud gasp escaped him with his back involuntarily arching when Hound licked his voice box gently. “Hound.”

“I got us. I will treat you like how you were meant to be treated.” Hound spoke with such softness that it caused Mirage’s digits to grip the thick green arms tightly. He leaned in next to his receptor. “Like a beautiful spark.”

The white and blue mech bit his lip to muffle the whine that wanted to escape. He didn’t know what to say to such a compliment, so he thanked him by wrapping his servos around Hound’s helm and pressed their lips firmly together. The pair both became more confident in their love making and their servos moved in various directions. Mirage wanted to feel Hound’s chest and shoulders while the green mech was in the mood for feeling Mirage’s aft. The green mech rubbed his nasal ridge against the other’s neck cables with heavy ex-vents.

“Hound,” Mirage moaned out his name which trigged all sorts of somethings in the next Father. He stood up with Mirage’s aft being firmly held in his servo. Hound pinned his lover against the wall behind them and grunted softly as he grinded against the smaller mech. “Hound.”

“Frag Raj, I love the way you say my name.” He admitted before squeezing the mech’s aft tightly, eliciting a deep groan from the other mech. Mirage bit his digits to stop himself from making anymore embarrassing sounds, but Hound took his blue digit in his mouth and pulled it away from Mirage’s. “I like those sounds.”

The mech heated up enough to have his cheek plates turn red from the heat. He didn’t know what about the action that caused it, but Mirage loved what Hound did. “Hound.” Hearing his name being moaned out again, Hound grounded against the Iaconian’s pelvic plating and they both moaned softly. The green mech lowered Mirage down as his pelvic plating slid to the side. Mirage felt something press against him and felt Hound move his servos down. His intakes stopped working briefly until his digits brushed against Hound’s spike. Hound gave a ragged ex-vent when the mech’s servo wrapped around his spike. “You’re… heh… a lot thicker than I imagined. I mean not that I was fantasizing about you, I mean I do I mean… Primus it’s getting hot in here.”

The green mech snickered before kissing Mirage again with himself stepping closer. “Now you know how I feel. Raj move your servo down to the base.” Mirage did what Hound told him and felt how it rounded off, this time he braved a glance down. His optics widened at the spike that was in his servo. Hound’s spike wasn’t too terribly long, if anything slightly longer than Mirage was, but he was thick especially near the base of it.

“What is it?” Mirage covered his mouth and looked away. “Sorry that was rude.”

The green mech chuckled and thrusted his hips slowly. “It’s okay Raj. It’s called a knot, prevents anything from escaping the valve. Before overloading it swells and locks the bots together.” Mirage looked back down and felt his valve lubricate itself as his imagination took a turn that he never thought it would. Hound smelt it and he thrusted harder against the servo with a growl escaped his voice box. “Raj, you smell like you liked that.”

“I-I have no idea what you’re talking Hound.” Mirage was stuttering, but he knew that Hound was right. The mech pressed his servo firmly against the small bulbous base, getting a whine from Hound as he slammed his servos on either side of Mirage’s helm. “Want me to stop?”

The green mech shook his helm as he bowed his helm with heavy panting. “No, feels good. Raj, if you keep doing that I won’t be able to stop.” Hound whined again, and it grew louder when Mirage pressed harder against the knot. “Frag.”

The outlander thought he was being nice and letting go of the quivering spike, but Hound obviously disagreed with that and slipped his spike between Mirage’s legs. The pair started kissing again while Hound squeezed Mirage’s legs around his spike, and slowly rocked his hips. The wilds mech weakly pounded his fists against the wall he pinned Mirage against. “Hound, I’m getting… hot.”

“I can smell it. Can I touch you?” He whispered behind grunts. Hound started sniffing the mech under him and drug his glossa across his neck cables. Mirage gasped again with his back arching; his valve plating snapped open and both sets of optics looked down to see how close the other were to actually interface. “I think we should stop before-”

Mirage shook his helm and spoke so quiet it was almost inaudible, “I want you to touch me.”

Hound nodded with a bite of his lip before sliding his servo to Mirage’s valve and just barely touched the anterior node before the mech gasped loudly. “Hound.”

Everyone was fueling before the doors were thrown open and the pairing that no one hadn’t seen for three groons marched over to the two empty seats across from Elita-One and Prowl. They kept their attention averted from everyone while their optics gazed at each other with smiles flashing on their lips.

“You were gone for a while.” Optimus pointed before taking a sip of his energon.

Before Mirage could come up with some excuse First Aid jumped onto his peds on the chair. “Mimi, your field’s funny. Did you and Hound go hunting like Carrier and Sire?”

Both of the mechs spewed their energon out with their optics widened in shock of what was asked of them. First Aid tilted his helm with confusion on why they reacted that way. Mirage started cleaning himself off while awkwardly answered the youngling’s question. “We were on a walk First Aid, nothing more. You need to sit down and finish your energon.”

“_Could have at least hid the fact you were biting him._” Flatline grumbled into his energon. Hound looked over at the frozen Mirage and saw the indent he left just between his neck cable and shoulder plate. His cheek plates heated up.

“_We didn’t do anything Flatline._” The mech wasn’t the least bit convinced, but he would let the topic drop for now anyways.

Mirage was smiling while drinking his energon. The femme saw how the two were acting very shy, and instead of embarrassing the pair she decided to change the topic. “So, Hound, since you and my nephew are going to bond why don’t I take you out for some inspiration?”

“Inspiration?” Hound spoke slowly with his helm tilting to the side.

“For your ceremony of course! I mean can you just imagine Mirage all glammed out and a glyph you painted on him? He would look so handsome.” Elita said with excitement in her words. Mirage whined and slid down his chair in embarrassment.

The green mech didn’t want Mirage to be well whatever his aunt had said, he loved the way he looked. Inferno quickly piped in for the sake of everyone. “Ma’am, we don’t wear wax in the wilds. If anything, it’s a bit of an irritant especially when mixed with the paint we use. We do paint designs on our frames to compliment our natural frame. But the pair pick out gifts to give to each other at the ceremony.” He looked at Hound and Mirage with a smile.

“Well that explains why First Aid asked about ‘itchy paint’. I’m sorry if I offended you Hound.” The femme apologized.

“Not mad,” Hound shook his helm with a smile. He had the necklace he had originally given Mirage safely stored in his satchel, but he wanted to wait until the right moment before giving it to him. Hound tapped Mirage’s arm, getting his attention and spoke softly. “_Can you ask her if it was okay if we still went out tomorrow?_”

“_You’re going to leave me all alone with my uncle? Hound, if you want to explore Iacon I can show you!_” Mirage didn’t want to be interrogated by his uncle or worse Prowl, who was an ex-enforcer.

“_I want to learn how to court like an outlander would. And bringing you along would ruin the purpose of a surprise._” He teased him.

“_Fine,_” he sighed with annoyance before speaking to his aunt. “Aunt Elita, Hound wishes to know if you would still take him out to explore Iacon.”

Red Alert jumped on that with zero hesitation, “not without proper security and planned route you aren’t!”

“Red Alert, my mate will be fine. It’s not like anyone is going to hurt her, trust me.” Optimus spoke in a tone that hinted at an interesting story. “That femme can throw a wicked punch.”

Elita chuckled behind her servo, “we’ll have fun.”

After a very awkward meal, Mirage was taking the clan members to the guest hall and gave Flatline his own chambers and told Hound that they were going to have to share a room with First Aid. The green mech was disappointed that they were going to have to share.

_No wonder Jazz and Sire go hunting so often_. Hound sat on the end of the berth with First Aid running around asking what everything was. Mirage was entertaining the youngling and took him to the wash room and First Aid had ran out to the room to tell, well more like shout, Hound about everything in there. The next Father lifted his brother into his lap and fell back with First Aid cheering excitedly.

“We’re going to have clean up before recharging.” Mirage sat down beside them with his ankles crossed. “We could watch a movie. If you want.”

This time both of them looked at the mech for more context. “Movie?”

“It’s really hard to explain, I’ll show you after we’re all clean.” He didn’t even know where to begin with movies. First Aid pulled away from his brother and looked at the washroom and then at Mirage. “Yes, we’ll be taking a bath in there.”

There was a knock on the door, the two wild mechs froze on the berth while Mirage went to the door and opened it slightly. Prowl was standing in front of the door with a datapad in his servo. “Hello Mirage, sorry for interrupting you but I just wanted to inform you that I’m going to be returning to Praxus, so if any of you need something to comm Red Alert or Inferno.”

“So, retired twice huh?” Mirage teased the Praxian.

“More like got a promotion. Optimus wants me to gather more info on the traders, locate anymore of their clan, and then hopefully reintroduce them back into the wilds if they so choose.” Prowl explained while gesturing at the datapad in his servo. “So far, the ones Inferno was with were the only ones found.”

Mirage nodded before glancing over at Hound and First Aid then back at his old guardian. “Prowl, if any of them from the wars did make it into the population, most of them are probably too old to safely return to the forest or were young when they were taken.”

“I completely understand, but we all believe even just giving them that option is better than nothing.” The Praxian explained to the Iaconian. “You certainly have a more… charitable vibe about your field.”

The mech scoffed with a smirk, “and you’re become arrogant in your old age. Have fun in Praxus, tell Bluestreak I said hello.”

“My nephew will certainly appreciate knowing his gossip partner is online and safe.” Prowl flicked his wings with a bow of his helm. As Prowl was leaving, Mirage closed the door and actually volunteered to give First Aid a bath.

Hound was sitting in the doorway of the wash room with the bottom of his peds touching. He was smiling as he watched the mech cleaning the youngling’s face. The green mech was getting lost in his imagination as he imagined Mirage taking care of their creations. A smile appeared on his lips when he realized that he just pictured _their _creations. Something wet hit him in the face, he looked in his lap to see something yellow and riddled in holes that was sopping wet. Looking up, Hound saw Mirage looking at him on his knees with one servo on First Aid’s back and the other on his waist.

“You can reminisce later; I need your help with cleaning your brother.” The mech gestured at the giggling youngling. “How can Jazz make it look so easy to clean your siblings? This is a two mech job.”

The green mech snickered and joined his lover’s side, taking his brother in his arms while Mirage quickly cleaned his legs. “I have no idea Raj, mysterious only a Carrier knows.”

After giving the youngling a bath, Hound did a wash that was so fast Mirage knew for a damn fact he didn’t clean everything. Mirage put a movie on and the three of them cuddled on the giant berth. Most of the time, Mirage was explaining everything to them from how they were watching bots without them knowing they were there and other times he had to explain to Hound what was being said. By the end of the movie, First Aid was sprawled out on both of the mechs in stasis. Mirage carefully pushed the youngling off his frame and turned the holoscreen off before going to lay back down until he noticed that Hound was gone. He looked around before he yelped when two large arms wrapped around his waist and a pair of lips peppered his neck with gentle kisses.

“You know what the outlanders would say about your apparent high interface drive?” Mirage whispered jokingly. Hound took his servos and led him to the balcony.

“A lovable mech?” Hound replied with joke.

The white and blue mech shook his helm with a snort, “no. They would call you extremely horny.”

This time Hound snorted with a shake of his helm, “only for you Raj. I didn’t hurt you too bad did I? I mean I know I didn’t actually go inside, but I did move my hips really hard towards the end.”

“I am fine Hound. I was a bit shock from how…_ ahem_… large the knot got. I can’t believe you would take the time to _lick_ me clean. Why would you do that? Isn’t that gross?” He looked at him with confusion.

Hound shook his helm with a purr and licked the startled mech’s lips. “Because you smell good so I knew you would taste good. And I was right.” Mirage’s optics grew by how confident Hound was with his statement. Once his processor caught up with the rest of him, he turned his face away with an embarrassed smile. Hound curled a digit around the mech’s chin and brought his attention back to him. “There’s no need to hide Mirage, I’m always going to be honest and straightforward with you.”

“I know, but being told I smell _and_ apparently taste good it just is… a lot to take in.” Mirage admitted while Hound pinned him against the railing. The mechs braced themselves against the railing as they leaned in closer to each other. “No… No one has ever t-told me anything… thing good about m-me.”

While Mirage was trying to talk they got closer to each other until their lips touched gently against each other. The green mech on top of him wrapped an arm around Mirage’s waist while the other brushed against the vents on his helm. Hound went to pull away, but Mirage pulled him back in with sound that distracted him from the flash at the bottom near the wall.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> While bonding ceremonies in the outlands and wilds are very similar, there are some of the more obvious differences.
> 
> Outlands:  
\- don't see each other until the ceremony  
\- the pairing paint a glyph on their future bonded's frame at the altar  
\- crystal bouquets are a common trend  
\- the bonded get repainted and coated in a sparkly wax finish  
\- spark merge for the first time in private  
\- have a honeymoon that the bonded's families pay for
> 
> Wilds:  
\- pick crystals for each other to wear to signify their love  
\- get painted in ceremonial markings (typically colors that compliment, but also stand out against their natural paint jobs)  
\- ceremonial glyphs are painted on their helms  
\- ceremony is held in front of their ceremonial tree  
\- spark merge in front of the clan  
\- will typically go away for a few solar cycles for the pair to continue their bonding in private while also going on a hunt, bringing back food and energon for the clan


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mirage tries to keep Hound and Sunstreaker from killing each other. First Aid starts enjoying the outlands more and more. Hound and Mirage give each other gifts.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long wait, holidays and work do NOT mix well XD

Mirage was looking at the datapad that had the morning news on it. As he scrolled through articles while refueling with his family and the clan members, he saw an image that resulted in him spitting out his energon. Everyone looked at the white and blue mech as he continued to stare at the article. Hound took the pad from his intended and looked to see what terrified him. “_Raj, it’s us._”

“Yes, Hound I know it’s us. Someone was watching us!” He covered his face and hit his helm on the table with an exaggerated groan. Hound didn’t understand what was upsetting Mirage so much. The green mech sat the datapad down and lowered his face to Mirage’s level and nudged his arm with his nose. “_Hound, some mech or femme saw us kissing. And now all of Cybertron knows I’m back here. I didn’t want anyone know I was back._”

“_Why not? Wouldn’t it prove to the outlanders that we don’t mean any harm since you are returned safely?_” Hound pulled one of the blue servos away to get a look at his future Inamorata’s optics. Their optics locked, one being confusion and the other being with fear. “_Why are you scared Raj?_”

The mech’s field was tightly closed off by everyone except for Hound and First Aid, and Mirage wished no one could tell that he was terrified right now. “_These bots will twist it into nasty rumors that I don’t want to be said about me, you, my family, or the clan. And now because of this it’s going to be non-stop._”

“_I do not care what the outlanders say about me. As long as they realize that the clan means no more harm than they do._” Hound grabbed his servo with an encouraging smile. “_And besides, if all of your outlanders see that I’m kissing you then they’ll know you are not free.”_

The white and blue mech sat up to look Hound straight in the face. They maintained optic contact for an uncomfortable amount of time for everyone else but the pair. Mirage looked at the datapad one more time before taking a deep intake and a ragged ex-vent. “Okay, okay I’ll ignore them.” The youngling jumped onto his peds with a servo going in the air with excitement exploding from is field. “First Aid, sit down.”

The youngling stopped jumping and sat down with a small huff, “but I wanted to know why you were sad.”

“It’s a long story First Aid.” He started rubbing the sides of his forehelm with a groan. “I’m not thirsty.” The mech stood up and left the room, before the doors were literally kicked open and Mirage had just barely turned around before he was tackled to the ground with a loud oof sound. Hound was quick to go see who was dumb enough to attack his future mate.

Everyone stood up and went to the main hall, Hound started growling while Mirage was trying to push the two large frames off of him. Prowl went over to the trio and pulled the red frame off of the ex-noble. Mirage was pulled up to his peds by his uncle and was immediately fussed over by his aunt. Hound was growling loudly and glared at the two mechs that were back to hugging _his _Mirage. It finally registered in the ex-noble’s processor who had tackled him to the ground. He looked at the busted doors with an annoyed huff, “you are paying for the damage you caused. You know I’m not built for full speed tackles.”

“Is that how you greet friends after a slagged up good bye like that?” Sideswipe wrapped his arms around Mirage and lifted him up in the air. Sunstreaker finally saw Hound growling and glaring at them, and he returned the action with his engines revving. Sideswipe looked to see what got his twin all mad and he saw the three obvious wild mechs staring at them, causing him to set the heavily annoyed Iaconian and went over to First Aid. “Woah, a youngling. Where’d you find him Mirage?”

Hound showed his denta as he growled and put himself between his brother and the red mech. Sunstreaker stepped in and got face to face with Hound. Prowl and Mirage were quick to step between them. “_Hound, calm down. They aren’t going to hurt me or First Aid. And they’re my friends, they stayed by my side when everyone else left._” Hound continued to glare at the twins that were being talked to by Prowl. He hugged Mirage close to his frame and hid his face in the white and blue mech’s neck cables. Mirage tilted his helm back to look at his only remaining friends, “sorry about Hound. He’s a bit… on edge because of a lot of reasons. And First Aid is Hound’s youngest sibling, they don’t steal sparklings.”

First Aid looked up at Mirage with a curious expression in his optics, “Mimi, who are they?”

“Sideswipe and Sunstreaker, they are long time friends of mine.” Mirage introduced them quickly before pushing Hound away so he could face the two mechs that came unannounced. “What are you two doing here anyways? I thought you would both be off world for that annual art event?”

The yellow twin crossed his arms with an annoyed huff, “yeah Sideswipe why don’t you tell everyone _why_ we won’t be going to the annual art event over in Aouda Fogg?”

“I didn’t mean to spill your paints on your paintings! I said I was sorry!” Sideswipe threw his servos into the air and then crossed his arms with a big pout.

“Sorry doesn’t help me get my paintings back you idiot!” The yellow mech pointed a digit at his brother. The outlanders all sighed, giving the wild mechs the hint that the twins argued often. Mirage looked at the two mechs and then at Hound who was leaning against him. “_Are you okay Hound?_”

“_I am, I’m sorry for how I acted. It’s just they were the ones that were being rude about my way of life and tried to tell you to get rid of my gift for you. For us that means your friends and family don’t think we’re a good a match._” Hound touched Mirage’s wrist when he started rubbing it at the mention of the gift. The green mech was still slightly hurt by that, but Mirage pulled him back to the present by expanding his field into his.

“_Hound, you know regardless of their influence I was not ready for this. Now I am and that, and when things have settled down we can do this properly._” Hearing this caused the next Father to instantly perk with a big smile on his face. Mirage put a servo in Hound’s face when he tried to get handsy with him in front of others again. “Public, public, not in public.”

“Raj, Inamorata.” Hound purred his engines before taking one of his servos and kissed the back of it. This got the ex-noble to heat up and start panicking in uncertainty of how to react with such public affection. “Raj friends… important, important to me. Can help fix._ I can make a layered hologram and help your friend with whatever is upsetting him._”

Mirage looked at his friends and then at Hound with an amazed expression. “_You would do that for them? That would mean so much to not just me but Sunstreaker too._” He looked at Sunstreaker with a friendly smile, “Hound said he can help you recover your paintings if you want.”

“Really? Wild mech is going to help me? Pfft, don’t make me laugh Mirage.” Sunstreaker scoffed.

“Prowl, why don’t we leave my the young mechs to get used to each other?” Optimus looked at his friend and then lowered down to First Aid’s level with happiness in his optics. “And why don’t you go keep my mate busy for a while?”

The youngling looked up his brother and Mirage for their okay, they both smiled and that gave the young wild mechling all he needed before nodding excitedly. “Can we go exploring the outlands!?” He started bouncing with excitement, getting Elita-One to nod with laughter. “Can Flatline come with us?”

“Of course,” she took his small white servo into her light gray one. “Why don’t we get you cleaned up before going out?”

“Okay! _Come on Flatline!_” He shouted with so much unknown energy and took off with his field flaring up with his obvious excitement. Elita-one chuckled as her and Optimus kissed each other a quick good-bye before parting ways.

Mirage took Hound’s servo and gestured for the twins to lead them to their complex. Sideswipe looked at Hound and then at his friend with a curious gaze, “so what’s with the getup?” The red mech gestured at Hound’s crystals and markings, but Sunstreaker elbowed him and got an instant reaction from him. “What was that for!? I was just asking! I mean you were thinking the same thing!”

“It’s for… religious reasons. That is the basics of it.” Mirage explained to his friends with Hound rubbing at his frame which got the Iaconian to pull his servo away. “_There’s nothing wrong with your frame or paintjob, now stop it._”

The green mech nodded and looked at Mirage’s friends with caution. “Has… purpose.” He covered nasal array with a small gagging sound. “_Outlands smell._”

“_I’m sorry I can’t do much about it._” Mirage was sympathetic for Hound’s situation, but he couldn’t make it better for him at the moment. He saw the looks he was getting from the twins, and knew what was going to happen. “Please for the love of Primus I don’t need a fight breaking out between the three of you. Hound and I are working it out, so I don’t need you two going all crazy bolts on him. _And Hound, they are my friends, so no fighting with them._”

Sunstreaker and Sideswipe backed away slightly, but both the red twin and Mirage knew that the yellow twin was going to be a lot tougher to convince to calm down. The ex-noble had been best friends with the twins since they were sparklings, and the twins weren’t extremely welcoming to others, but they were pretty protective over Mirage. “Yeah well as long as he doesn’t get micro-nats on my furniture, I won’t hurt him.” Sunstreaker dared a glare over his shoulder at Hound. “Why’s he doing that?”

“He’s sensory sensitive.” Mirage glanced up at the uncomfortable mech that was getting in his space. Normally the ex-noble would be pushing the mech out of his personal space or physically get away from the mech, but Mirage knew Hound needed him to be his anchor right now. He looked around to take in the sights before looking at his friends, “so how have you two been since I left?”

“We’ve been fine, we got a new trainer to help with our coding glitch.” Sideswipe smiled with a playful flicker of his field while Sunstreaker remained silent. “Sunny’s art hobby is taking off and our best friend is back. And what about you mister ‘why don’t I drop everything and leave?’” Sideswipe teased his friend.

Mirage rolled his optics, “I have grown a lot. I could finally match Sideswipe if we were on a track. And almost everything we were taught about them was wrong, they are so much more civilized than many of the Cybertronians in the cities.” They were stopped because Hound was looking at a display window which got the three outlanders to go to his side to see what caught his attention. In the window were domesticated cyberwolf puppies of all shapes and colors that were yipping and pawing at the window when Hound touched the window. “_Hound? They’re just cyber-hound puppies._”

“_They look so sad; this is how your people get cyberwolves?_” Hound looked at the three with a frown on his face. He went back to looking in the shop and saw all of the mechanimals that were inside. “Not right.”

“They’re just pets,” the twins both shrugged without really seeing the problem with it, but Mirage knew what about the sight upset his lover. _Is that what Hound is? My lover?_ Sideswipe tapped the glass at a black and light gray pup that had one flopped auditory ear and a bright turquoise stripe from the tip of his nasal array to the end of his tail. “Hey that one seems to like you Mirage. Wanna get it?”

Mirage rolled his optics, “no Sideswipe, I have way more important things to worry about than a small creature that I’m not going to be taking with me back in the wilds. Can we just go before we draw a crowd?” A bit of the ex-noble’s snobbish behavior started coming through when he crossed his arms and hurriedly walked ahead of the group.

Hound looked at Mirage with a confused expression on his face. He looked at the creature that was looking up at him with that same look that Hellhound would give him when he wanted treats. The mech looked down at his peds in thought before following the twins after the nearly gone white and blue mech. “Raj smells upset.”

“_Smells_? You can _smell_ his emotion?” Sunstreaker sneered at how strange that statement was, and his facial expression turned into an exasperated ex-vent when Hound nodded with a genuine smile. “So wild.”

Mirage looked over his shoulder when he realized that he was far ahead of the group. He groaned with agitation and stepped to the side of the sidewalk to get out of the ped traffic. When the rest of his group finally caught up to him he was greeted with Hound shoving his face into his neck. “_Hound, what has you all amped up? My heat cycle is over with._” He didn’t understand why the green mech was acting so strange, even more so since the whole bonding ceremony talk and the twins visiting.

Hound glanced around after reluctantly pulling away, “_you’re starting to smell like the outlands again. They’ll take you away from me._” Mirage rested all of his weight onto one ped with both of his hips and a look neither of the three mechs saw on the Carrier mech. The dark green mech put his servos on his hips and bowed his helm before looking up at the sky with a heavy sigh. “_Fine, I hate the outlands cause I can’t give you what they can, and someone is going to take you away from me._”

Mirage pressed the pads of his digits on his face with an exasperated laugh and a shake of his helm. “_We’ll talk later about this in private, okay? For now, we focus on helping my friends._” The ex-lord looked over at the twins, “can we just drive there? If we don’t hurry up Hound’s going to explode with anxiety and I’m going to scream at how idiotic you two still are.”

“What are you talking about Mirage, we are not stupid.” Sideswipe got defensive with his arms crossed. Sunstreaker rolled his optics with a huff before gently pushing his brother off the road so they could transform. “So, what’s the wild mech speaking in?”

Mirage gestured for Hound to follow his lead, when they were on the road in his alt modes he answered the question. ::His name is Hound and they speak an old Cybertronian language called Primal Vernacular, at least that’s what Jazz told me.::

::Jazz?:: Sunstreaker questioned his friend as they drove for their condo.

::Jazz is from Polyhex, used to be a musician but now he lives with Hound’s family. He’s actually First Aid’s Carrier and is mated to their Sire. He’s been really helpful in teaching me how to survive out there with the clan.::

Mirage mentally rolled his optics at when Sideswipe made a remark about how confusing the wild mechs were. They came to a red light and Sideswipe decided to involve Hound in their conversation. ::So, Hound, was it whatcha got planned for our dear Mirage?::

::Sideswipe!:: Mirage and Sunstreaker both sounded horrified by the question the red mech asked.

::To love, protect… honor. Raj Inamorata.:: Hound’s broken Neocybex was oddly attractive to the ex-noble. The white and blue mech’s engines purred softly at the confident statement. The light turned green and the four mechs took off and drove in silence, but Hound was silently taking notes of all of the strange things the outlanders did and then would ask Mirage why they did such weird things like why femmes just stopped at the corners before bots walked off with them. The green mech finally transformed when the others came to a stop in front of a large home, it wasn’t as big as the Prime’s manor, but it was fairly large. Hound sniffed the air and took ahold of Mirage’s servo when a different scent was heavy around the area besides the twins’. “Mate?”

“Mate? No, our trainer lives with us. Easier that way.” Sunstreaker answered bluntly as they walked inside. “Hey old mech we’re home!”

“The name’s Ironhide not ‘old mech’ not crankshaft, Ironhide.” A heavily armored red mech stomped out of a room that was behind a spiral staircase. He had a towel in his servo and a weight in his other servo, letting the four mechs know he had been working out. “Who are they? Thought we agreed that you’d comm me before bringing bots home?”

The three young outlanders all looked at each other with equally disgusted sounds. Sideswipe put his servo on his best friend’s back, “no Hide this is Mirage and his whatever at the moment Hound. They came to help Sunny-”

“Call me Sunny one more time I’ll punch you right through your-” Sunstreaker growled and went to go for a mid-section punch, but Ironhide was quick to grab the yellow mech’s wrist and yanked him away.

“No hitting each other. Mirage, I’m Ironhide their trainer and their protector. Mostly protect them from each other.” Ironhide held his servo out to the ex-noble in a very traditional greeting, and when their servos connected Hound sniffed the air to decide if the older mech was a threat. “Your friend isn’t much of a talker is he?”

Mirage looked at Hound and gave him a sympathetic smile, “Hound is from the wilds. He’s just a bit tense. It’s nice knowing they finally have someone to keep them somewhat out of trouble. _Hound, it’s okay._”

“_Okay, he’s too old for you anyways. They can have him._” Hound got a chuckle from his future Inamorata and he knew his lover was finally gaining a sense of humor after a long time. He stepped over to the red mech and held his servo out and a smile on his face. “Hound.”

Ironhide shook it firmly and was impressed by the equally firm grip. “Nice to meet a fighter. Well go do whatever it is yer doing, I’m going to go clean up.”

They followed Sunstreaker up the staircase and entered a room that instantly disturbed Hound’s sensory array. The room was large and covered in tarps, canvases were piled up everywhere, brushes were scattered around on tables and floor, and of course paint cans were the only thing neatly stored all colored coded up against the wall. “Here lies the paintings that my _idiot_ twin ruined because of his stupid self-losing battle.”

“I was practicing my jet judo like Ironhide was telling me to do.” Sideswipe tried to apologize once again. Mirage rolled his optics and explained to Hound what was going on.

After several long groons, Sunstreaker finally fixed the last of his art pieces and Hound finally was able to drag Mirage away for a quote ‘quick scenting to get rid of the smell of the outlands’ and that was by rubbing and sniffing every inch of Mirage’s frame. It was a couple more groons before anyone had seen the pair, and before Mirage could give his lover a proper kiss goodbye his aunt dragged him off for their little outing. Which meant the ex-noble was left with his uncle while Flatline apparently wanted to take First Aid to see the Prime’s mechanimals.

Mirage and Optimus were sitting on the back deck with glasses of energon being handed to them by one of the servants. They mirrored each other’s movements as they took a sip of their energon. There was still no words exchanged between them before an uncomfortable chuckle escaped the Prime. “Your Sire and I would sit here every solar cycle to watch the suns lower, back when he was the Lord Prime. He used to tell me ‘Orion, we may not like the changes that happen to us, but it is some times the change we need to find out who we really are.’ And for a long time, I never understood it until I accepted the Matrix from him. After being the Lord Prime and fighting in the war with the wilds, I finally understand what he meant. I didn’t want to change from the carefree dock worker before your Sire came up to me to tell me of my future, but I have to think about the bots that look up to me for guidance.”

“You have to understand that the clan, they don’t care about any of you, us. They have their own history, laws, and beliefs. I didn’t understand why they would attack so hard and for so long just to avoid a home and warm energon, until I lived with them. Of course, I haven’t experienced any acid storms or extreme weathers yet, but when I ran away from everything and the responsibility. I thought the credits, the publicity, and parties was what I wanted to be happy, but being with Hound makes me happier than I have been for a long time.” He crossed his legs like a noble mech would. “Hound’s taught me that being mad all the time isn’t going to fix anything or bring them back. My creators would want me happy. And I think I’ve found someone that I can share my time with.”

“He really seems to like you.” Optimus silently sighed in relief when he got an airy chuckle from his nephew.

“To put it lightly. Hound wasn’t afraid to let his feelings known once I decided to give this whole love thing a try. They are more cautious about having creations than half of Iacon. Once my heat started, Hound wasn’t allowed to be around me unless we were surrounded by at least five other mechs. He dragged me out before the first sun rose to train me and make sure I didn’t get myself killed. Hound nearly got himself killed to protect me.” Mirage took another sip of his energon before sighing with a small smile appearing briefly. “The thing is, I’m scared. Hound has made it well established that he was never going to beat around the scrap heap with me. He’s going to want to bond and start a family, but… I’m afraid I’m not going to be able to be as great of a creator as mine were.”

Optimus put his large servo on his nephew’s shoulder, “I can understand your fear, but you shouldn’t be afraid because someone wants to be with you for the rest of their functioning and start a family with you. That will only make you miserable.”

Mirage looked up at his uncle with his optics scanning him. “I suppose you are right. I’m just glad that he’s willing to see that I’m a bit more of a high maintenance bot than many of the bots in his clan, and I have certain habits that I can’t let go.”

“Well you certainly won’t stop being spoiled, but this time the right type of spoiled.” Optimus lightly teased his nephew. “So, do you plan on giving him a gift?”

The white and blue mech shrugged, “he isn’t entirely the hardest to please. He’d be thrilled if I hunted enough to fuel the clan through the entire freezing solstice, or what they call ‘the freezing point’.”

“I see, maybe ask Inferno what to do to pick a gift out for Hound? Or maybe you could take him to the crystal gardens?” The Prime suggested which gave Mirage an instant idea.

Mirage perked up with a field flaring in happiness. “The clan do give each other crystals as gifts, perhaps that’s what I’ll do. Thank you, uncle for the idea.”

In the streets of Iacon, Hound was with Elita having an extremely interesting time. She was taking him to an energon café for energon that Hound found interesting, then to a body shop to which the next Father refused to use wax, and then on the hunt for a gift but Hound knew straight away what to get him. They were forced to take Red Alert and Prowl because of safety reasons apparently, but Hound didn’t see the need for it. He sniffed the air and patted Elita on the forearm, and pointed in the direction he wanted her attention.

“Wolf… Raj gift.” Hound saw the confusion in her optics, so that just resulted in him physically taking them to the mechanimal prison. He took her servo and dragged her through the street, barely getting them through without a scratch from the traffic.

“Primus, Hound, I know you’re excited about something but please use the crosswalks. We could’ve gotten killed.” She panted with her servos on her knees. Hound was soon getting a digit and receptor full by the strange mech that was now mated to Inferno. “Red Alert, Hound doesn’t know what you are saying.”

“Well then Inferno can fragging translate to this irresponsible dangerous incompetent imbecile! He could have gotten you killed!” He stared ranted, but Hound started pulling her to the glass window until the small yipping sound started up again. “Get your servo off of her and use your words.”

Hound looked at the panicky Polyhexian, “no. Raj!” He started putting his digits on the glass as he was trying to find the one from earlier. The next Father perked up and tapped it with excitement of a sparkling. The cyber-hound from earlier started yipping and scratching at the glass where Hound’s digit was at. _How do tell them what I want? _He looked at the Praxian as he spoke roughly, “ehh… wolf… Raj bond. Hmm… g-g-gift.”

Prowl’s wings flicked as he tried to figure out what was being said. Once it clicked he had that realization in his face. “Oh, you wish to give the cyber-hound to Mirage?” Hound nodded with excitement again and looked at the mechs and femme before back at the pup. “Why?”

“Hard… story long. Beasts… choose friends.” Hound roughly explained before tapping at the glass. “Chose Raj.”

“They’re just dumb beasts, they can’t choose.” Red Alert crossed his arms with an annoyed huff.

Hound snorted and shook his helm, “outlanders… think us… dumb. You think… Inferno dumb?” He saw the startled look in the white and red mech’s optics and then he started stumbling over his words.

“Come on, we’ll get the creature for you. Will certainly be a surprise for my Mirage.” Elita was definitely a bit taken aback by the request for the gift. They walked inside and Hound instantly picked up the excited puppy as if it knew why Hound was there. After the femme paid for the cyber-hound, that’s all Hound wanted done to it, despite how desperate the merchant was to sell more to the party.

The pup was licking the green mech excitedly while he held it close to his frame. Hound was laughing the entire way until they made it to the manor, and he tried to shush the young thing. “Don’t let Raj hear ya until I can tell him. Stay here and eat the energon and silver chips.” He settled the pup on the ground in the washroom before closing the door and quickly left to go find Mirage.

“Hound, Hou- oh there you are.” Mirage was at the bottom of the stairs in the main room. The pair met each other in the middle and they both kissed each other on the cheek before Hound eagerly led him upstairs. Mirage chuckled as he thought about how much a one track mind his lover had. “Hound, we don’t have time to make love right now. I have some plans for us tonight, probably another run if you’d like.”

“Ooh a run? No, no can’t think about that right now. I have a gift for you, it’s in our room and I think you’re going to love it… well her.” Hound stopped in front of the door with a smile and carefully opened it, and started clicking his glossa when he saw that the puppy wasn’t where he left her. There was soon an excited yip which instantly caught Mirage’s attention. His jaw dropped when the small black and light gray pup went running towards him barking.

“H-Hound, you got… when I said a gift, I wasn’t expecting an actual life. Hound, this is… it’s… oof stop no more licking.” Mirage was trying to keep the puppy away from his face. He saw the slight hurt in Hound’s optics by his words came across as. “No, no I’m not rejecting the gift. I just was expecting something like a crystal or a secret adventure, not a cyber-hound. Will she be able to survive the wilds?”

“Hellhound and the pack can teach her, but I saw how you both connected. There were legends that everyone is sparked with a mechanimal spark partner. Primus separates the mecha and the beast so they can go through the great journey of finding each other once again. That’s why we respect the mechanimals and thank them when we kill them.” Hound’s smile was back once again and was seeing how excited the pup was still. “Raj, calm your spark or she’ll never settle.”

“I am calm.” Mirage snapped before accepting that he wasn’t calm in the slightest. “Okay, maybe I’m just a bit excited. I was expecting a crystal or something non-living.”

The green mech laughed guiltily before he finally asked, “where’s Aid and Flatline?”

“Oh, they’ve been looking at my uncle’s mechanimals that he has. Uncle and I decided to let some of the chronohorses and zap ponies out for him to play with. I think I saw First Aid harassing Inferno into telling him about the city.” The Iaconian explained before the wild mech started petting the femme mechanimal’s helm. “What to name you? Hmmm.”

The tiny creature was gnawing on Mirage’s digits while the bipedals were talking. Mirage continued to stare at her in silence until something sparked inside him. “Nyx.” The tiny cyber-hound made a confused whining sound when the word was spoken at her. The future Inamorata spoke it again and the mechanimal released the digits so she could bark. “Nyx, come here.”

The femme yipped and scrambled into his lap with excited licks on his chin. “Okay, okay calm down girl. Primus Hound, how do I calm her down?” Hound chuckled when his lover wanted to calm her down, but _even _he felt how excited Mirage’s field was. He took some venting exercises to help him relax. Mirage took a deep in-vent before letting go slowly.

“Mechanimals are field sensitive, they will use your energy to react. If you are scared then they will get scared or aggressive in return. You are anxious and excitable so she, Nyx, will be excited as well.” Hound put his servo on Mirage’s white chest plate and then another on Nyx’s back to show him what he was talking about. “Close your optics and feel the fields in the room with your spark.”

Mirage rolled his optics with a scoff, “this is silly,” but he did it anyways. He slowed his vents and felt how calm, collected, and in control Hound was of his field and then he felt how still excited and happy Nyx was. When he felt his own field surrounding him, he felt his underlining anxiousness surrounding him. “Okay, maybe I’m a little anxious but that’s because I want my gift for you to be perfect. And a mechanimal this young is like having a sparkling, and it just makes me super nervous to think about that future.”

“I didn’t think about that, I’m sorry. And being with you is all I want.” Hound pressed his face against Mirage’s neck cables. “And you will be an amazing Carrier, I can tell.”

The Iaconian chuckled at how confident the green mech was in him. He turned and kissed him on the lips, they were interrupted by the doors bursting open with First Aid’s laughing and pouncing on them. “Mimi, Hound! Optimus said that I had to ask if it was okay if I could go play with my spark friends. Can I, ple- ooh puppy!” The youngling was instantly distracted by Nyx barking with excitement and licked him on the face. First Aid started giggling uncontrollably while her tail was wagging a million miles a groon. “Glossa tickles!”

The two adults laughed softly and looked at each other smiling. “Well so much for calming her down.” Hound nodded in agreement with Mirage’s statement. “First Aid, this is Nyx. She’s going to be coming with us back to the clan.”

“New clan member! Yay!” First Aid started jumping excitedly and clapped his servos with the same excitement. “Can I play with her?”

For the first time Hound in ever he was going to suggest to his sparkling brother to spend time with outlanders. “What about your… spark friends? I thought you wanted to be with them?”

First Aid perked up at the mention of them, “I thought you would be mad? You didn’t like Mimi’s friends.”

“It’s a bit different Aid, if you want to see them I won’t be mad at you.” Hound pulled his brother into his lap and rubbed his cheek plate. “And it’s going to be a long while before you see them again. We’re going to be going home tomorrow, the rains have cleared up.”

Hearing this news deflated the youngling’s mood, which obviously wasn’t the next Father’s intent, but he wasn’t going to lie to First Aid either. “Can I see them when I’m bigger?”

Mirage took his servos to get his attention, once he had it he spoke. “When you are older, you be able to decide if you want to see them or not. For now, though it’s dangerous. Okay?”

“Okay Mimi.” The youngling said solemnly.

It was late in the night; First Aid was in stasis with Nyx in Mirage’s room. The two lovers were walking servo in servo where they made love for the first official time. Mirage closed the door behind them, and Hound wasn’t expecting low glow crystal lights to bring some lights in the small building. There were two empty glasses on the shelf with a vase that smelt like high grade to the green mech. Mirage stepped in front of him with his digits fidgeting in front of him and he started pacing. Hound touched his elbow struts to get his attention. The white and blue mech took a heavy ex-vent before opening his subspace and pulled out a small black cloth. He looked at it and quickly held it out for Hound to take it.

“It’s not a pet.” Mirage tried to use humor to disguise his nerves. Hound chuckled and unfolded the cloth before seeing a small rugged pinkish-red crystal that had streaks of even lighter pink going around the bottom of it. The ex-noble hated the silence and lack of response, and he went to a negative place. “My creators used to give each other these, they’re only found in the Stanix river. It’s a stupid gift. I-”

The mech was interrupted by Hound setting it on the counter and pulling him into an intake taking hug. “It’s not stupid, it’s beautiful Raj. I love it.” He released the shorter mech and pressed their lips firmly together before pulling their lips away briefly. “I’ll have to wait till we get back to camp so I can add it to my necklace. It really is beautiful. I wasn’t expecting you to give me one so soon.”

The Iaconian ex-vented in relief when he finally accepted that Hound truly did like his gift. The mech slid his blue servos up thick green arms that came to a full stop on the sides of Hound’s helm, and he brought his lips back to kiss. Hound slowly took one of Mirage’s servos into his while his other servo slid around his waist. The Iaconian was startled by feeling a glossa that wasn’t his slide into his mouth before retreating again. Hound pulled away with heavy ex-vents. “If we don’t stop now, I won’t be able to stop myself.”

Mirage could hear the other’s cooling fans slowly start churning while his were almost at full blast. His words came out softly as he continued touching Hound’s heated frame. “Then don’t.”

Hearing that got a need fill throaty whine from Hound. He lowered Mirage to the ground and slowly crawled on top of him, occasionally smell him until their lips locked again. Mirage’s servos were pinned on either side of his helm while Hound grinded slightly against the hot blue plating. The action got an aroused moan from the smaller mech which in turn got a turned on growl from the mech on top. Hound pulled away from the kiss and went for his neck, gently nibbling at the cables like he had done before. Their voices never gotten above very soft whispers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rhodochrosite: brings true joy to one's life, heals old wounds and makes it possible to love oneself and others unconditionally.
> 
> Should I get a bit more explicit with the romance scenes? Or is this good for ya'll as an M-rated fic?


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The group return home, Mirage and Hound take a bit of a risk, Jazz tries to come to terms with First Aid's situation, and the clan prepares for the freezing solstice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey ya'll, sorry for such a long wait. Work has been crazy, but I managed to get this done. I'm so glad a lot (if not all) loved Nyx, I thought she would make fun and amusing misunderstanding of gifts.
> 
> On a side note, I have two WIP fanfics on my Fanfiction.net page (TWOS: Alt ending and Order and Trial). If you haven't checked them out yet, would you like me to bring them over to ao3 for you all to read? Let me know and I can get everything copied and transferred.

Ch. 15

Elita held onto her nephew with her digits digging into his frame as she tried to not cry. Mirage was trying to pull away so he could make room for the cyber-hound in his arms. “We’re going to let you know when we’ll have the ceremony here, but you need to let me go so I can get First Aid back to his Carrier.” He looked to his uncle for help, after a bit of internal debating, Optimus gently pulled his mate away from their nephew.

“Elita dear, Mirage will be fine. We will see him in the future.” He held her close to his frame to get some space between the femme and mech. The lord Prime gazed at his nephew with a gentle expression, “how will you let us know you’ve returned?”

“My comlink frequency here won’t work in the forest. You won’t be able to reach me either, not unless we’re past the tree line.” Mirage explained to them before looking at Hound with a bit of questioning gaze. “_Are you ready to go?_”

Hound nodded with a smile. He looked at Optimus with confidence in his field, “clan and outlands… truce.” The youngling tugged on his digit to get his attention. “_What Aid?_”

“_We’re friends with the outlanders now? They’ll stop hurting us?”_ First Aid looked at his brother with a sad look in his expression. The green mech smiled down at his brother which indicated that things were going to wok out for the clan, and the youngling shouted in excitement.

It took a solar cycle and a half to get to the entrance to the camp, but despite how excited First Aid was to see his family Flatline forced all of them to take a quick bath in the delta. The nano-second the youngling was allowed to get out, he shouted for his Carrier and Sire as he ran through it. The three adults walked through the entrance with Jazz dropping the pipes he was helping Blackshadow carry, and booked it for the sprinting youngling. “Aid! First Aid! Oh, my little Aid!” He picked up his youngest creation with his arms wrapping around First Aid tightly as he swung them around in a small circle. Nyx started yipping with the excitement, catching the optics of everyone and the pack, wanting to go play with the mech that was holding his current favorite playmate, but Mirage held him close to his frame.

Mirage was smiling to see how excited the creator was to have his creation back. He followed Hound over to Jazz who was finally setting First Aid to get a good look at him. “Carrier, look I’m all grown up now! And… And I made new spark friends, but Läakäri Flatline and Mimi’s weird Läakäri friend said I can’t see them again until I’m old enough. The outlands are a weird place, they don’t go hunting and you can’t see the stars!”

“You are certainly a talker like I was when I was your age. Carrier agrees, the outlands are a pretty silly place, but don’t forget that’s your heritage too. And what’s this about you leaving?” Jazz was basically trying to calm his son’s spark by calming himself.

“Jazz, maybe I should talk to you and Father in private to explain what the outlander Läakäri said about First Aid’s condition.” Flatline suggested to the Inamorata, who nodded with a smile.

The Polyhexian kissed his son’s face before nearly tackling Mirage to the ground had it not been for Trailbreaker catching the two. Hound successfully snatched the young pup out of his future Inamorata’s arms and took her over to the pack to be introduced. “Primus Jazz, I don’t think Triage wants to repair you… again.” Mirage let the Inamorata to hug him before it was Hound’s turn to be nearly squeezed out of his armor. The Subaltern leaned next to the white and blue mech. “Stood out in the rains for groons before SharpEdge had to go out and get him inside. He was really worried about all of you.”

“Well I thought you should know that my uncle is still willing to uphold the truce with the clan. We also have information on… the ones taken, but I think it would be best if Ultra Magnus and I talk in private.” Mirage spoke softly, though he knew Jazz was most likely secondhand listening to them talking.

“He’ll be back at first moon; he’s out helping scavenging for supplies. Herds are moving which means we have limited time before the freezing solstice comes. Hope you’re prepared for the cold.” He teased before being called over by Apelinq and BombBurst.

The rest of the younglings were returning form a field trip with Scylla, Bumblebee, and CatSCAN. They saw Hound and Mirage and they all shouted in excitement before tackling the two to the ground, asking them a million questions that were all sadly left unanswered. The future Father laughed as he finally managed to get the collection of younglings and sparklings off of him. “Hello little ones, we’re all safe now. You need to go back to Watcher Scylla; Raj and I have some adult stuff to talk to Inamorata and Father about.”

“Then can you tell us stories about the outlands? Are their denta sharp like fangs? And the Seekers are forced to spark bond when they’re little? And the outlands smell?” The questions continued to pile on until Scylla called for them. Mirage was helped onto his peds by Hound.

“I hope you know my aunt will expect at least one more visit for a bonding ceremony.” Mirage teased Hound and laughed more when the green groaned in disappointment of having to go back to the outlands. Flatline went to speak with Triage about whatever.

Ultra Magnus called for Mirage to follow him into the fields to make sure no one could entirely eavesdrop. While they were talking, Jazz was giving Hound that creepy grin which was making the green mech super uncomfortable. He was trying to ignore the Polyhexian, but he snapped when he could feel the unwavering gaze. “Yes Jazz?”

“You seem really happy. Something happy in the outlands?” The current Inamorata teased the green mech who was slowly heating up with embarrassment. Jazz took his servos and was eager to get the news from Hound, creation or not. “I wanna know everything.”

The mech gawked and wacked the mech on the chest with a slight glare in his optics. “Nothing! Raj and I just decided to spark bond. After the mourning ceremony, we will need help to bring all of the frames. Mirage’s uncle offered to bring them to their side of the river in a couple solar cycles.”

“Mhm, well the way Mirage was stripping your armor with his optics I would say it was more than ‘nothing’.” Jazz grabbed his face with his digits and continued to tease the fully upgraded mech. “Am I going to have to go ask Aid about how many times you two disappeared?”

The green mech heated up and pushed the black servo away from his face. He glanced away with a loud huff. “Fine, fine! We snuck off a couple times, but we didn’t do anything. We promised to wait until the bonding ceremony.” Hound was getting agitated with the interrogation he was being put through, but Jazz was just enjoying himself and hugged the bulky frame with some cooing and was trying to embarrass him until Ultra Magnus and Mirage returned from their talk.

“Jazz,” the Polyhexian looked up when Hound was trying to pry him off, “get off the mech. We have a lot to talk about after the meal.” Ultra Magnus pulled his mate away from his son and looked down at him, “I will go and meet with the outlanders with Triage and Trailbreaker to retrieve our sisters and brothers. I want you to take BombBurst, Apelinq, Blackshadow, and SharpEdge to retrieve the hunters in the pits. I will uphold our part of the deal and return their people for ours.”

Mirage looked at the Inamorata with a subtle touch to his arm, when he got the still laughing Polyhexian’s attention he pulled him away from the two mechs. “Um, Jazz I need to talk to about private things.” Before the visored mech could accept or decline, but they both knew he would’ve gone along with, Mirage dragged him to the mountain and into Jazz’s family area. There was a moment of silence before Mirage quickly quietly exploded, “why didn’t anyone tell me that they’re equipment was different?!”

“Ah hah! So, there was more!” Jazz got excited as if he was gossiping with a friend, but he quickly pulled himself together and acted more as the Inamorata. “Right, I suppose I should have told you ahead of time. Yeah the mechs have knots and the Carrier mechs and femmes have a specialized interior seal in their valve that instantly closes to keep the lubricant sealed to ensure a sparkling is created. And before you start gawking and ask about how I keep looking so fine after so many sparklings, it’s a secret that I promised my mate I would take to my offlining.”

The ex-noble nodded and sat in the window sill with his arms folded in his lap. “Does… it you know hurt?”

“Mmm, at first but as long as you take your time then it won’t hurt. Trust me, I’m no virgin Solus, and been with plenty of mechs to know that many city mechs think with their spike and not their processors. Hound may not be up to par for a noblemech, but he has manners of a Prime.” Jazz joined the mech and crossed his ankles with a chuckle. “I changed a lot of my frame and a few of my internal systems to come across more like the clan than the outlands. I may still have family in the city, but what the mechs and femmes I thought of a friends and mentors did to me was unforgivable. My armor, was custom made by Flatline right before my first freezing solstice with the clan. He makes some really neat armor, keeps us a lot warmer than with the standard armor the outlands use. We could ask him to make you some if you’d like.”

Mirage gave Jazz a stunned look, “really? First Aid said that you got your subspace taken out, the clan doesn’t expect me to change myself to the extent you have do they?”

“’course not! If you like your frame, then maybe see Triage about updating your heating and cooling system so your systems don’t freeze.” The visored mech playfully shoulder the mech before looking over at him with a softer smile. “So, I know you probably don’t want to talk about it with me anymore than you already have, but do you have any questions about interfacing? If you’re too uncomfortable with talking to me, I know Triage and Flatline will be able to answer.”

The Iaconian rubbed his wrist in thought before drawing up the courage to ask the mech next to him. “Is it a common thing for mechs to get super possessive and… mouthy when kissing? Or is that just a Hound thing?”

Jazz snorted before tipping his helm back with a thoughtful hum, “remember Hound was sparked with highly sensitive senses, so he does get overwhelmed with scents. But just because my son may get overwhelmed with scents and caught up in the moment, doesn’t mean you don’t have the right to flick him in the olfactory array if he gets too aggressive. And the clan has never dealt with cheaters or spark breaks, so Hound probably was defensive because something happened with you. He hasn’t tried to force you has he?”

This time the white and blue mech defended the mech of topic, “oh no! He wouldn’t even touch my hood without me saying it was okay.”

“That’s good, I’m glad some manner stuck with my son.” Jazz saw how Mirage silently chuckled and his helm tilted very slightly with a questioning expression. “What’s funny?”

Mirage shook his helm with an internally amused smile. “It’s nothing, but it’s nice that even though Hound isn’t your creation you still see him like one.”

“Well even though Hound ain’t mine, he still was and is the first sparkling that ever saw as a creator. Sure, we had our ups and downs, what creator and creation doesn’t? There was a time where Hound would blame me for not saving his Carrier, but after nearly half a deci-vorn of being blamed, Hound’s personality did a full 180 and he apologized and wished that he could take it back.” Jazz explained with a smile on his face as if he was lost in a memory. “Of course, I forgave the mech and told him that it was just hormones. I love that mech with the same amount of love as I love my own creations.”

The Iaconian smiled as he swung his legs slightly, “I can tell he really looks up to you. Could you _maybe_ help me with you know letting the clan know that I’m going to be bonding with Hound?”

“Sure! Oh, this is going to be so much fun!” Jazz looked excited once again. “And you are going to tell me about that pup that you were holding.”

While the monochrome mech was having a ball of a time, Mirage saw Pyra Magna walk in with her younger siblings following after her. He froze in fear, but Jazz was quick to hold his arm to his chest and finish drawing sigils on the inside of his forearm. The younglings all got excited and ran, offering to help their Carrier while Pyra sat and watched. “You really like him don’t cha? No outlander would go through all this just to be with us.”

“Hey now, hello do you know remember who your Carrier is? Mirage is Clan now.” Jazz got sassy with his oldest creation, waving the pointed brush at the red and turquoise femme. He turned back and started focusing on the task at hand, “Mirage there’s nothing to be embarrassed about. They’ll go through this one cycle and so will your creations.”

Beachcomber tapped Mirage’s arm getting his attention, “the puppy you brought home really likes you. She also really liked the name you gave her.”

“She does? And I’m glad she likes it. What does Hellhound and the others think of Nyx?” Mirage saw how bright the youngling’s optics got when he joined in the conversation.

“He doesn’t know yet, but I told him he had to be nice to her just like how he’s nice to you.” The youngling said with excitement in his field.

“Mirage, Javelin and I wanna give you sibling gifts. Can we?” Swerve asked the older mech that was getting some symbols draw on his thighs. Soon the rest of the younglings got excited and asked the confused mechs if they could give him gifts also.

The oldest femme answered while sitting near the bowls of paint her Carrier was using. “Sibling gifts are where the siblings give gifts to the bot their sibling is getting mated to. They were pretty young, well younger, when Trailbreaker and I started courting and they gave him rocks and stuff they found while with the watchers.”

“Oh, I mean if you all want too.” Mirage didn’t want them to be upset if he had politely declined. They all got excited and took off in a hurry to find something to give to Mirage. “I have never met younglings so excited about giving someone _else_ gifts.”

“Don’t worry, when the younger ones hit their third stage frames their personalities will settle down.” Jazz said before tapping the end of the brush to his chin in a thoughtful hum. “Pyra, something’s missing.”

The femme looked at the mech and knew that she could go down two different paths, either be honest and helpful or continue to berate the outlander, but she knew that her big brother was absolutely peds over tread for the mech, so she be entirely mean for him trying to impress Hound. “Hold on, I have something.” Pyra Magna got up and left the room before coming back after a short klik. She took his arm and wrapped a set of lavender crystals around the painted up mech’s bicep. It had a center piece that rained down with a dark purple crystal. “There, it was Trailbreaker’s Carrier’s so please be careful with it okay?”

“Oh!? Are you sure? If it means that much to you, I-” Mirage didn’t want Hound’s sister to think she _had_ to help him out.

“I’m sure. I don’t want it collecting dust for Primus knows how long before I have a creation.” She dryly joked before they looked at the Inamorata for his approval. Jazz was silently humming and did a few circles before standing in front of Mirage with a big smile on his face. “Carrier?”

“Perfect! Now you wait by the entrance of the mountain and I’ll make sure Hound isn’t going to ruin all of my hard work.” Jazz kissed his daughter’s cheek plate and then gently brought his forehelm to Mirage’s with a big smile on his face. Mirage smiled at the gesture which got a playful pinch of his chin from the visored mech. “There’s that smile. Alright I’ll go see what that mech is doing.”

Mirage and Pyra Magna went to the entrance and waited until Jazz waved them over from his place beside Ultra Magnus, Hound, and the other adults. Hound’s jaw dropped just like how it did the first time he had seen him with just simple painting. Mirage’s face heated up and he rubbed the back of his helm with an uneasy chuckle. The next Father walked straight to his future Inamorata, and started running his digits along the markings on his arms and then the ones on his chest followed by carefully touching the item on his arm. “You look so beautiful. Like…wow.”

“You like it? I… did it for you.” Mirage wasn’t liking all of the optics that were looking at him. Hound could tell that he was nervous.

“You did all of _this_ for me? You look amazing Raj! You really want to be my Inamorata?” Hound asked with excitement and Mirage nodded with shy smile on his face. The green mech shouted in pure excitement as he lifted Mirage up in the air and did a short spin in the air, and then turned it into a tight hug. Everyone was clearly amused by the green mech’s excitement.

Mirage was still shy with PDA, but he let Hound let out his excitement. “Well I certainly didn’t do it for SharpEdge, now did I? As for if I want to be your Inamorata or not, of course I would be honored to be your Inamorata.” Hearing this got Hound even _more_ excited, and kissed him on the lips in front of the clan members. Mirage was beyond embarrassed and hid his face behind his servo when he saw everyone staring at him. Hound took his servo to help ease Mirage’s nerves. “It’s not too much is it?”

“It’s perfect Raj. Jazz did an amazing job.” The couple were interrupted with Hellhound walking over to them with Nyx being held, by a loose piece of protoform, very gently in his denta. The cyberwolf sat her down between his paws and sat down with a low rumbling in his chest. Nyx barked and ran up to Mirage started with her paws going to his shins. “Well it seems Nyx is still happy. Was she good for you boy?” Hound playfully scratched behind the creature’s receptor. The cyberwolf gave a deep woofing sound.

“I would hope that was a happy sound.” Mirage joked as he picked up the small pup in his arms. The cyber-hound yipped and started licking his face, which got a groan from the ‘victim’ and a laugh from the spectator. “Ugh, no Nyx. No, no licking my face.”

Nyx didn’t seem to mind while her tail wagged excitedly. Mirage started petting her neck before setting her back down. Hound chuckled when she gave a high-pitched squeaky howl before running off. Hellhound turned and walked after the excited puppy. “Hellhound seems to like Nyx; she’ll learn a lot from him and the pack. Well we have a few cycles before dark, maybe we could go for a walk or help around the camp?”

“I’m fine with helping around for a bit. So, what are we going to do about the… pods? I know it’s a sensitive topic, but the others have a right to know what happened. What those mechs did to them was terrible.” Mirage spoke softly while they were slowly walking over to where some of the clan members were separating duties out.

“I know, but Sire is going to want to make sure little receptors don’t hear. And I’m glad your Läakäri friend was able to repair them with Flatline. I think repairing Override helped heal a lot of old wounds.” Hound explained as they both glanced over to see Triage leading a downed looking Flatline into the Läakäri’s cabin.

The white and blue mech nodded and leaned against him slightly. “Who was she?”

“His mate. They got separated during an attack, we spent cycles trying to find her.” The next Father answered with a very soft whisper. Mirage shook his helm in disbelief that bots would do something like that. He guess the more he heard about what torment the clan was going through just because his people thought they knew best, the more he understood Jazz’s reasoning for not wanting to go back to Polyhex. Hound decided to cheer up Mirage again by giving them a job to go collect some items that Triage and Flatline would need during the cold season. “Sorry if Jazz bugged you about what happened before we came back. He likes to talk about personal things.”

Mirage smiled with a half chuckle, “he’s not afraid to speak his mind. It’s okay though, not like he probably didn’t already assume.” They left the camp and the painted mech laughed at the current situation. “I current help but notice that you asked if I wanted to go on a walk of help around the camp. When you suggested the camp, I assumed you would want to help _inside _the camp not go outside and help.”

“Well can’t we do both?” Hound rhetorically asked with a playful smirk. Mirage rolled his optics as they walked down a path, smiling at how happy and easily pleased Hound was. The green mech started showing the other mech what Triage was needing; Mirage watched and nodded to everything he was being told. “And the Copper plates from this plant are used to set Seeker and Praxian wings when injured. We don’t have many of them, but we do have fliers, so it’s good to stock up on this regardless of what the weather is. Whatever scraps are left then sometimes we’ll throw it in energon or use it for treats.”

Mirage examined the thin sheets of copper and watched how if he used just enough pressure it would put small dents where he had pushed. They started peeling off more copper plates before putting them in Hound’s satchel. “So, I don’t know if I’m ready to give up my subspace, but maybe we can use it when we gather things? Our satchels won’t fit everything that we’ll be getting, I can already tell.” He remarked playfully and gestured at the mech’s already semi-bulging bag.

Hound took it off and started lifting in the air to show how heavy the bag was becoming. “I guess we went a bit overboard with the copper, but it’ll be used up no matter what. Alright, do you remember what the cylogel reeds looks like?” The green mech tested Mirage, nodding after he somewhat described the item in question. “Really good, but the cylogel reeds have the gel pods on the bottoms of them rather than the top. When they are on top, that’s the Cryogel reeds and those will freeze you from the inside out so avoid those.”

“Got it.” Mirage kept his optics out for the reeds, only picking them when he found them growing out of the small stream they were walking beside them. The ex-noble looked at the reeds after picking off the pods carefully. “What are we going to use these for?”

“We don’t really use them for anything, but we could always give it to the chronohorse.” Hound explained as they continued on their walk. Mirage and Hound decided to fill up some glass reservoirs with the water and some with oil. They were making their journey back to the camp when Hound looked down at Mirage with a curious look in his optics. “Hey, tonight would you like to recharge with me in my room?”

Mirage snickered at the request, “actually recharge or a pleasurable time before that?” When Hound didn’t say anything except smile, Mirage chuckled at the answer he was given. He leaned forward and kissed the mech with his servos sliding up his frame. The green mech hummed with a purr of his engines and he looked around before taking Mirage’s servo, and led him through the thicker parts of the forest and removed the satchels and pinned the mech against the tree’s base with a playful growl. Hound groped his aft before grinding against Mirage’s pelvic plating. “All that and you are already riled up? What if I was actually trying to entice you?”

“Then I’d be all over you with my glossa against your valve and lick your sweet taste.” Hound whispered into Mirage’s helm vents before gently biting his neck cables. Mirage groaned loudly before he attacked Hound’s lips. The green mech hiked the white leg up, wrapping it around his waist as he grinded harder against him. Their cooling fans were just coming back to life before what sounded like howling came from the distance. They both stopped and Hound looked up towards the sky slightly. “Scrap, come on we need to go back.”

Mirage groaned in disappointment that they were interrupted so soon. “Now I know why Jazz and Ultra Magnus go on hunts together. That howling didn’t sound like any of the cyberwolves or astrofoxes.”

“We use sounds to let hunting parties or whenever someone leaves camp, that the warriors have spotted something dangerous. I can’t tell what it is, whatever they saw must be downwind of us and my sensor array is still trying to clear up from the outlands. It’s probably best if we head back, come on.” The next Father grabbed the satchels and led Mirage back to the camp before Apelinq and BombBurst dragged heavy sheets in front of the large opening. Mirage watched the two lock the large panels with giant boulders to keep them in place.

“What are those for?” The mech questioned while being half dragged to the cabin.

Hound looked over his shoulder as he sat the satchels down on an empty cot. “The panels? We use them when we see dangerous predators in the area. They must’ve seen something hunting nearby. A lot of the mechanimals will hide out and go into stasis for the cold, but there are some that still remain functioning and will hunt what they can find. Seeing as we don’t go into stasis, they sometimes will come after us. But usually when we are in smaller groups, so when we go hunting or scavenging during the freezing solstice we go in larger groups.”

“Will they be able to get through?” Mirage questioned while the two Läakäris were sorting the items. He saw how they organized everything into servo made crates that were strapped to the ceiling at an angle for easy access.

“No, they won’t waste energy for hard to get prey. Trailbreaker told me that one solstice the clan learned the hard way about not barricading the wall. A robo-raptor managed to push the walls open enough to squeeze through. He said it only managed to get to the center of camp before the pack alerted them that it was there.” Hound saw the growing worry on Mirage’s optics and he quickly eased his fear, “no one was badly damaged, everyone was fine, and we learned to use something to barricade it to keep them out.”

Mirage nodded with a visible ex-vent and grabbed the empty satchels, “anything else you need us to grab you?”

“Naw, we’re good.” Triage waved the pair off while helping his assistant push one of the boxes back into place.

With their permission to leave, Hound was quick and almost eager to take the mech to his room. Mirage barely had time to say hello to Jazz and Ultra Magnus, who were co-cleaning their younglings, before Hound sat Mirage on his berth and started grabbing stuff from a box that was near the back wall. The Iaconian watched the wilds mech scurry from the wall over to him, sitting beside him while pulling out the gift Mirage got him and removed his necklace. Hound carefully undid the twine and started taking half of the crystals off. “I want your crystal right next to my Carrier’s.”

“Really?” He watched Hound carefully pick up the crystal he had given him, and used what looked like a small drill bit to carve an equally small hole into the top part. Mirage had to admire how at home Hound looked while putting his gift on the twine and then putting then rest back on. The green mech made sure every single one was back on before tying his necklace back off and slipped it back over him.

“There, now I’ll have a piece of you wherever I go.” Hound, being the everlasting romantic, saw how his words made Mirage heat up and felt his field spike happily at that. He chuckled as he leaned forward with a kiss on Mirage’s lips. “I have something else I want to give to you. If you want it,” Mirage sat up straighter with a look of confusion as he watched Hound pull something out from the satchel that was sitting near their peds.

He held up the last thing the mech thought he was ever going to see again. “My- the necklace you got me? I can have it back?” Mirage’s voice was growing weak as he tried to not let himself cry pathetically in front of Hound. The green mech wasn’t expecting that type of reaction, but he gently placed the item in his servos. The more the mech looked at it, the less control over his emotions Mirage had. He didn’t want Hound to see him start crying, so he quickly hugged him with his face hidden in his neck cables. Hound was a bit taken aback by the reaction he wasn’t expecting, but when he returned the hug with his servo rubbing his back. “Thank you so much Hound.”

“So, this is a happy cry?” Hound asked for clarification. Mirage pulled away with a smile struggling to stay on while wiping his face of the tears.

“Yes, this is happy crying. I’ve missed this so much. It’s what kept me strong after you left.” Mirage carefully picked up the necklace from his lap and squeezed the item gently to his chest. The mech looked up at Hound with a sheepish smile and an innocent look in his optics. “Can you put it on me?”

Hound looked extremely honored for the offer and quickly accepted it by taking the necklace, and undid the twine and redid it when it was around his neck. “How’s that?” Mirage touched one of the larger crystals before hugging Hound once again, his engines were softly purring. The white and blue mech looked up at him and initiated the kiss. Hound just started touching his frame with Mirage pulling away briefly to remove the arm band from his arm, setting it on a shelf, and pulled Hound gently on top of him. The green mech started kissing the smaller frame down to the pelvic plating. Mirage softly gasped with his plating opening up when Hound’s glossa roughly scrapped against it. “You’re still sensitive, even after the last three times I did this?”

“I’m not used to glossas being rough. How come y-you’re so altered?” Mirage questioned while Hound continued dragging his glossa against the exposed valve. The ex-noble had to not only bite his lip, but also cover his mouth to keep the moaning muffled.

“My sensor array is was something I had since my first upgrade, my glossa was changed at my first adult upgrade, but my spike was always like that.” Hound gave each example with a swipe of his glossa. Mirage started squirming, but couldn’t move very far with Hound holding him firmly in place. “But I don’t hear any complaints coming from you? Would you like me to stop?”

Mirage shook his helm vigorously with a whine escaping his voice box. Hound went to his face and kissed him on the lips, chuckling softly, “shh Raj be quiet.”

“O-Okay.” The mech softly panted, licking his lips and tasted the lubricants that Hound was going back to enjoying. He started wrapping his servos around the back of the green mech’s helm. “Ho-Hound.”

He looked up with a playful look in his optics and pressed harder against the anterior mode. Mirage’s mouth opened but nothing escaped. The Iaconian felt something stroke along the outer folds of his valve alongside of Hound’s glossa. He lifted his helm to see Hound using two digits to stroke his now nearly leaking valve with his face unfortunately pulling away. “You taste like the finest of energon. Can I use my digits?”

Mirage nodded with a whimper and Hound was quick to carefully slid his digits into the valve. The mech went to react loudly, but the next Father was quick to muffle the sound with a kiss. Hound decided to take it further by slowly pushing a third digit in. Mirage dug his digits into Hound’s shoulders; the green mech growled softly when his future Inamorata’s scent was filled with arousal. “Raj, you smell so _good_.”

The white and blue mech looked into Hound’s primal filled optics with his aroused ones. He couldn’t find any words to speak, but Hound could tell that Mirage was enjoying it. The future Father moved his digits harder and was rewarded with the valve clenching around the invading digits as well as a small whine. The lovers were enjoying themselves for nearly half a groon before Mirage overloaded against the green digits. Hound cleaned his digits and then moved onto using a cloth that he had tossed in a bucket of cleaner. He wanted to be careful while Mirage was recovering from the overload. Once they were cleaned up, he pulled the shorter mech into his lap while grabbing some of the oil berries he had stored in his satchel.

Mirage finally stirred from his overload and was pleasantly greeted by a gentle kiss on his lips. “Mmm, Hound?”

“Yeah?” Hound asked while offering one of the berries to him. The recovering mech took it with a soft hum.

“I feel bad, you always make me feel amazing and see that I overload. But you never get anything out of it. Doesn’t that frustrate you?” He tilted his helm up to see Hound smiling down at him followed by a shake of his helm.

“You deserve it. Knowing that you enjoy doing this with me is enough for me.” Hound confessed with a gentle peck on the lips. He fed Mirage another oil berry before eating one.

Despite how romantic that confession was, Mirage wasn’t going to accept that as his final answer. He allowed his lover to pamper him a bit more before taking this into his own servos. Literally.

“But Magnus, what if they are doing something that they shouldn’t do? I’m just going to check on them.” Jazz was trying to break free of his mate’s hold after fueling all of their creations.

Ultra Magnus rolled his optics and sat them both down on the ground with their younglings climbing into their Sire’s lap with happiness in their fields. “Hound is smart enough to know not interface before bonding, and from how you told me outlanders are they believe the same. Spend time with your creations now that they are clean.”

“Sire, Carrier will the frozen acid rain come this season?” Nautica asked for her and her siblings. They all looked up at their creators with excitement in their optics.

“Maybe, but remember the rule if you play outside?” Jazz caressed each of the tops of his creations’ helms. They all nodded with excited sounds of confirmation. “Okay, but you can go get your special waxes done tomorrow because it’s time for recharge.”

They went to whine in protest, but the nanosecond they saw their Sire’s stern gaze and they quickly abided by their Carrier’s wishes. Jazz watched their small pack of younglings file down to the to their shared room before leaning against his mate with a proud smile on his face. “We did good, don’t you think?”

“We did an exceptional job with each and every one of them.” Ultra Magnus relaxed calmly before placing a soft kiss on the top of his helm. “You did a great job, especially when you claimed you never wanted sparklings.”

Jazz scoffed with a playful shove of his mate’s shoulder, “well I didn’t believe you when you said the chances of getting sparked was a guarantee. What are we going to do about Aid? If what Flatline, Hound, and First Aid say is true there’s a chance he’ll leave us. I don’t want him going through with that surgery, that is for a fragging fact.”

“We’ll let him decide when he’s older; for now, let him enjoy his younglinghood and is still here.” Ultra Magnus assured his mate before finally standing up and gestured for the hall. “A small peek but that’s it.”

The visored mech flashed a smile before they went to Hound’s room and saw the green mech holding Mirage close to his frame. One of Hound’s servos was gently stroking the top of Mirage’s helm while his other servo was around his waist. Mirage’s visible servo was pinned between their frames. Ultra Magnus quietly gestured at the scene and silently mouthed at his mate that he was worried for nothing. They went for their room, thankfully missing Hound falling onto his back with his spike sliding back into its housing while venting softly.

“I’m sorry, did I hurt you?” Mirage softly questioned while watching Hound pant hard. He shook his helm with a dopey expression. “It wasn’t that bad was it? I’ve never… well you already know.”

Hound shook his helm with half a kiss, “that was amazing. I was surprised you would use your mouth. _That_ was the best part.” He kissed with a small purr of his engines. Mirage heated up instantly before pressing close to him again.

“Mm, well I’m not opposed to doing that again. But maybe not when your family is able to hear us.” Mirage spoke softly near his receptor before kissing once again.

Early in the solar cycle, Mirage onlined partially with Hound pulling the thermal blanket over top of their frames. He turned his helm to look over his shoulder and could hear the sounds of the early risers. “Ignore them Raj… it’s just the morning hunt.” Hound spoke tiredly as he pulled Mirage into his hold. The white and blue mech looked up at Mirage with Hound looking down with a tired smile. “They won’t notice if we’re not out yet. I can’t wait to make it official. You really want to be with me?”

“Yes,” the ex-noble was answered with a playful kiss on the helm vent which caused him to shiver with a small gasp. Mirage felt Hound rub his aft with a playful growl near his helm. “What’s wrong Raj?”

“You’re trying to arouse me. If you’re online enough to do that then you’re online enough to get out of berth. Come on, can we get up before someone decides to-” they were interrupted by Bumblebee jumping through the curtain of crystals, a servo over his optics as he shouted.

“Carrier and Sire want you to help!” And then he ran out.

Mirage and Hound both looked at each other before chuckling to each other. The future Father gently nudged Mirage’s face with the tip of his nasal tip. “I suppose we should join everyone before Jazz decides to send the rest of the swarm to get us.”

The pair did a quick assessment of themselves before Hound just naturally took Mirage’s servo in his. They left the mountain and went to get energon before Triage made a beeline straight for them, but spoke only to the future Inamorata. “Mirage, you will need to think about upgrades or a frame update before it gets too cold for me to safely do anything.”

“I don’t think I’m ready to change my frame, but I’ll try to stop by for an upgrade on my systems.” Mirage answered the Läakäri with a quick gaze to his right where Hound was staring at him with his optics growing wide. He looked back at the red mech, “do you think we could talk about… things also when you’re free?”

Both Triage and Hound were a bit surprised by the question. “I don’t see why not. I’m just going to be doing last klik maintenance on everyone before too late. Hound, did you need anything majorly updated? I’m gathering a list of who is top priority. Currently all of the sparklings, younglings, and Mirage are at the top.”

“I’m all green lights. How’s Flatline doing?” The green mech asked with genuine concern for their friend.

“He’s still upset, but he at least will have closure when her body is returned to the clan.” Triage looked at the cabin where Flatline was being talked to by a couple others. The older mech sighed sadly at his friend’s loss, “I only hope that the killing will stop.” And with that Triage left the pair.

Mirage let that sink in before feeling extremely bad for the mech, completely understanding his loss. Hound decided to improve his lover’s mood by taking him to check on the pack. “Come on, I think the pack are going out hunting.”

“Wait isn’t Nyx with them?” Mirage asked with concern as they went over to the small area where the cyberwolves and astrofoxes ate and recharged. The cyberwolves, those that were able to hunt at least, were getting ready to leave but a certain cyber-hound was trying to follow after them. Hellhound picked her up by the scruff and gently dropped her in the collection of pups that were playin nearby. He turned and actually yelped when Nyx was looking up at him with her tail wagging happily. Mirage was laughing in his servo when they watched it happen three more times with Hellhound growing more agitated by the klik. “Nyx, come here.”

Nyx looked up at the mech with an excited yip, barreling towards him with enough of a distraction for the hunting pack to leave while they could. Mirage picked her up and scratched her audio receptor. “She’s not going to be affected by the cold, will she?”

“No, they have specialized systems to produce heat like my Sire or your uncle for that matter. Some of the Predacons produce extra heat.” Hound explained while giving attention to the rest of the cyberwolf and astrofox pups. Mirage nodded in understanding while lowering to set Nyx down to play. “She’ll be fine with them Raj.”

Mirage smiled at Hound in agreement to his statement. The pair were swarmed with younglings calling Mirage and Hound’s names as they started cheering excitedly, those with wings were flapping them with absolute excitement. Neither of them could understand what was being said despite the whole group were pointing up at the mountains while cheering even more. Hound laughed as he tried to calm them down, “okay, okay calm down everyone we can’t understand you all at once. What’s got you all excited?”

“BombBurst and Scylla saw frozen acid rain at the mountains! It might collect in the forest!” CatSCAN’s brother was so excited that he was clawing up the future Father’s arms.

“Well if it comes to the camp, we’ll be sure to play in it as much as possible then won’t we?” Hound rubbed their noses together, getting a happy purr from the youngling.

One of the other younglings saw the necklace around Mirage’s neck and then the markings, and she let out a squeal. “You’re going to be next Father’s ‘namorata? That’s _so _amazing.”

Mirage heated up but nodded to the question as well as the statement. “I am. Is that okay with you?”

“Yeah! You’ll have Inamorata to help you; he had to learn all by himself.” One of SharpEdge’s sons glued himself to Mirage’s frame, “at least that’s what Sire told me.”

The Iaconian looked over at Jazz, who was being greeted by one of the femmes and was smiling throughout the entire conversation. He looked back down at the mechling with a smile, “I’ll try to be a good Inamorata then. Someone’s got to keep Hound in line, huh?”

The younglings all started nodding and making sounds of agreement before the watchers called for them. They obediently returned to the watchers on duty. There was nothing said until Hound snorted, “keep me in line? More like keep your _amazing_ aft online.”

Mirage gasped and back handed the closest green shoulder playfully, “they are younglings Hound! And you can’t stare at my aft, that’s super rude.” The mech stood up, leaving Hound on the ground to have his optics go for the blue aft. The white and blue mech saw this and popped him on the helm. “Hound! At least try to have some self-control.”

“But it’s beautiful like the rest of you.” The green mech claimed after standing up to kiss Mirage’s heated cheek. “And you didn’t mind me groping it last night or grinding up against it those couple lunar cycles in the outlands.” Hound whispered hotly into Mirage’s helm vents before taking off laughing. Mirage was beyond embarrassed and took off after his lover to give him a piece of his mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Frozen acid rain: frozen glacial acetic acid


	16. Chapter 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mirage learns about the struggles of the cold without the comfort of artificial warmth.

Ch. 16

The winter solstice was beyond cold, colder than anything that Mirage had experience before. Triage had just barely upgraded Mirage’s heating and cooling system before the bad storm hit. Hound was coming back with a few of the warriors and the younglings that were going on their first hunt. Mirage was with Pyra Magna and one of the other femmes when the party returned. He saw the disappointment on the adults’ while the younglings went to tell their friends or their creators in excitement. Hound went over to Mirage, pulling him into a hug and kissed the closest air vent on Mirage’s helm.

“No luck again?” He asked while handing Hound a bowl of energon. The green mech shook his helm as he knocked it back.

“Nothing to call fuel. Not even the packs could find anything. At this rate we’re going to have to go energon hunting.” The next Father side as he rubbed the back of his helm, his sister rubbed the back with a sympathetic smile. “Sire and Trailbreaker will probably send parties for crystal hunting once Apelinq gives the report. What have you been up to this solar cycle?”

Mirage and Pyra looked at each before looking back at the confused green mech. “Your sister was telling me some fun stories about you when you both were younglings. We also kept the younglings entertained.”

Pyra laughed at that statement, “more like they kept us entertained.”

“Isn’t that true; Cheetor and Swerve decided to lead the youngling brigade on an adventure out of the camp. Pyra Magna and I had to go and hunt ourselves.” Mirage laughed at the event Hound had missed. He was soon stumbling slightly when something pushed his knee out. Both Hound and Pyra caught him before the mech turned to see who attacked him. A tiny yipping sound pulled their attention down to see Nyx looking up at them with energon dripping from her muzzle. “You look like you had better luck at finding fuel than us, huh. Primus you are a mess.”

He knelt down and gently ran his servo down her back. Nyx planted her small paw on his chest to get closer to lick his face. Mirage groaned and quickly stood up before she could lick him more. The white and blue mech heard his name being called, they three of them looked in the direction of the voice. Jazz was making his way over with a concerned expression as he looked around as if looking for someone. “Jazz, what’s wrong?”

“Have you see Nautica and First Aid?” The Inamorata questioned as he did a couple turns as he stood on the tips of his peds looking for his creations. He rubbed his helm with a frustrated sound. “Slaggit, I told those two to stay inside the camp.”

“Nautica adventurous?” Mirage looked at the Carrier as he gave a frustrated ex-vent.

Jazz scoffed with a nod, “yeah that femme likes to get into trouble and of course with Aid he’s going to be curious to explore.”

“We can go look for them.” Hound offered before the Polyhexian shook his helm.

“Uh no, no Magnus wants you to- I’ll be back.” Jazz’s attention was clearly in a million places. Mirage felt bad for the visored mech, and was kissed on the cheek by Hound before he went to go see what his Sire wanted. Pyra had been called by warriors, which left Mirage to himself. He looked at the gate and fizzled out of sight.

He remained invisible until he was out of sight of camp. Once Mirage was visible again, he started to look around for some sort of tracks that would reveal where the younglings had run off too. The mech just blindly walked straight for Primus knows how long, and regretted not bringing a thermal blanket to help with the continuing drop in temperature. Mirage stopped when he heard a series of giggles in the distance. He followed the sound until it stopped, and he stopped with his helm whipping around to try find for sounds of the younglings.

“Nautica? First Aid? Where are you?” Mirage called out as he continued walking. He stopped walking after several kliks when something hit him in the face. The mech turned to the direction of the thing that was thrown at him. In the bushes along the path were a pair of blue visors and a couple of giggles. “First Aid, Nautica? Come on, this isn’t funny.”

A flash of purple tackled Mirage from the back while a white and red blur pounced him at the front. The mech stumbled around for a bit until he found his stabilizers again. “Mirage, did you come to play with us too?” The femme asked excitedly.

“No, I- wait too? What do you mean too?” Mirage sat them both down and lowered to their level. The two younglings looked at each other and back up at the adult with guilty expressions. “First Aid, don’t lie to me, what are you two doing out here?”

The masked mechling hummed nervously before answering nervously, “Nautica wanted to show me the outside. And we saw this funny looking outlander talking to himself. And he wanted to find the clan-”

“What!? You didn’t tell this mech did you?” Mirage instinctively grabbed the tiny shoulders and shook the youngling just out of fear. He heard the small gasp and saw his visors brighten, letting him know he startled the youngling. The mech pinched his nasal ridge with a stressed ex-vent. “I’m sorry, but there are bad outlanders out here and you shouldn’t have come out here. He could have taken you both or worse hurt you.”

Nautica put her servo on Mirage’s blue servo, getting his attention. “It’s my fault Mirage, First Aid told me to not talk to him, but he looked lost. We told the mech that if he played hide-and-seek with us, then we’d take him to Sire.” The purple femme pushed her digits together as her field pulled away slightly away from the mech. “Are we in trouble?”

“No, no you’re not but we need to make sure that he doesn’t find the clan. Do you remember what he looked like?” He was interrupted by the sound of rustling from off to the side. The mech slowly stood and put the younglings behind him in case it was anything dangerous. None of them moved as the rustling continued until a small petro-rabbit hopped into the middle of their path. Mirage sighed in relief, silently thanking that it was just an innocent mecha-animal, well until it released a death curdling scream just as a laser fire pierced the creature. The younglings screamed and Mirage whipped around with him shielding the younglings from view.

Now in front of them was the blue seeker from before stood there with his arm lowering to the ground. Mirage took a defensive stance while pushing the two smaller frames closer behind his frame. “Okay, I played your ridiculous game. I need some answers so I can get back to my slagging party.”

“Whatever the younglings promised, forget about it.” Mirage growled and took an intimidating step forward. “I’ll have you know that I can pull off a noble accent just like you. And I most _certainly _don’t recognize you from any of my uncle’s parties, you must’ve gained your wealth through some sort of bonding.”

Thundercracker gasped and then pointed an accusatory digit in Mirage’s face. “I’ll have you know that my family have been nobles since the fourth generation. And what do you _know_ about nobility, _wild_ freak?”

Mirage crossed his arms and scoffed with a grin. He put a servo to his chest, “I am so glad to know that I’m fitting in so well with my new family. I’ll be sure to let my uncle, the Lord Prime, know that you find them… us as freaks. Why don’t you make sure you and your little pathetic trine stay out of our land, and I won’t tell every journalist that you tried to botnap younglings and study hundreds of nonconsenting bots.”

“Lord P- you’re the Lord Prime’s nephew?!” The mech gawked while Mirage lifted two digits up to his lips and whistled loudly. “Wh-what are you doing?”

Loud growls echoed Hellhound and his pack stalked out with all of them getting ready to strike on command. Thundercracker took a few cautious steps back until one of the wolves nipped at his thruster. The Seeker yelped and looked around in a panic as the pack closed in on the mech. Mirage whistled again to get Hellhound’s attention. “_Back Hellhound, he isn’t going to hurt us._” The ex-noble glanced up at the staring mech while the large cyberwolf was standing in front of them protectively. “The wilds and its people are protected by the Lord Prime; if I see you or your trine so much as steal a microscopic nanite from the side of the border again, I will be sure that my uncle strips you of your rank.”

Thundercracker went to speak, but there were shout coming from the distance. His helm whipped over his shoulder and then back at Mirage with an agitated rumble. “I’ll speak to my trine about bringing back what we took.” He leapt in the air and transformed before taking off.

Mirage and the younglings looked up towards the sky before he looked back down at them with his servos going to their shoulders. “Are you two okay? I think the clan realized I was missing too, come on let’s head back before it gets dark.”

“Mirage, will Carrier be mad at us?” Nautica innocently asked as she was lifted onto his back while First Aid was lifted into Mirage’s arms.

“He won’t be mad at you two, but he was really worried when he couldn’t find either of you in the camp.” He had to lift his legs just a tad higher than normal to get through the ankle high frozen acid that coated the ground. As they continued to walk, the sounds of others got closer and Mirage stopped when he saw Jazz and Ultra Magnus along with a few of warriors. They stopped too while the younglings were lowered down to the ground; they ran up to their Carrier with excited squeals.

“What are you doing out here you two!? I thought something got you.” Jazz dropped to his knees and pulled them in his arms tightly while nuzzling them happily. He purred his engines softly while kissing the tops of their helms with a smile on his lips. “I’m so glad you’re safe. How did you get past the guards?” Jazz looked them over for any injuries, and was satisfied when they looked to be unharmed.

First Aid and Nautica both looked up at the silent Mirage, drawing the attention of their creators. He stiffened and looked at them with a nervous flicker of his field. “Well Nautica wanted to show First Aid the forest. I knew you were pretty worried about them, so I went out to find them. There… there was someone from the outlands wanting to find them, but I managed to chase him off with the help of the pack.”

Ultra Magnus looked over at Bomb-Burst and Apelinq with nods before taking off. The Father gave his creations a very stern look with his arms crossing over his chest. “Nautica, you know better than to leave the camp without an adult. I expected better from you. And First Aid, you should have come to one of us and not your sister if you wanted to explore. You’re both lucky Mirage got to you before any of the outlanders took you away.”

“I’m sorry Sire.” They both looked at their peds as they apologized, both were clearly sorry for what they did.

The Father nodded firmly, “good, now your Carrier and Mirage are going to take you both back home while we go and find some fuel.” The purple femme went to speak out, but Ultra Magnus held a servo out to stop her. She stepped down and nodded solemnly. “Good, now go on.”

“Yes, Sire.” The younglings answered obediently before slowly heading back for the camp with Mirage and Jazz following behind while they spoke softly to each other.

“Who was the mech that saw them,” was the first question the visored mech asked.

Mirage looked at the younglings while rubbing the side of his helm with a bit of anxiety. “It was this Seeker named Thundercracker, he’s apparently a lord in Vos. I saw him and his trine looking for the clan when we were heading to Ratchet. We were able to avoid being seen, but clearly they have either a camp somewhere in the forest or they’re flying back and forth.”

Jazz shook his helm in disagreement with that, “it’s too cold for flying. That’s why all of our fliers are grounded until the thaw. We’ll have to be careful with returning from scavenging. It looks like I have to go over the rules with the younglings again. Take advice from me, don’t go crazy on the creating.”

The Polyhexian threw his helm back in laughter while Mirage was chuckling nervously. “Yeah, I don’t know if I’d be able to handle the amount you have. Have you ever thought about introducing your creations to your creators?”

“I would love too, but they believe I’m deactivated, and I don’t want them to go through the whole mourning process again.” The current Inamorata spoke sorrowfully. Mirage’s face twisted in confusion, not understanding why Jazz would want to keep away from his creators. The monochrome mech saw the expression and he gave him a small smile in hopes to assure him. “I’ll tell you later, but I’m okay Mirage.”

The mech nodded when he took the hint of the conversation coming to an end. They were returning to the safety of the camp before the white and blue mech was side tackled by a heavy frame. Both him and Jazz fell backward with pained groans, and just from the nuzzling alone Mirage knew who it was. “Hound, I was only gone for a groon. Get off me, you’re crushing us.”

“I- oh, heh sorry.” Hound went to defend himself before he realized that he really was crushing the shorter mechs. He stood up while helping his lover back onto his peds. “Did I hurt you at all? Sorry, I just was worried when I noticed you were gone.”

Mirage sighed softly and grabbed both sides of Hound’s face, bringing him to his optics. “Hound, I love you, but I’m fine. I’m not the same mech I was a deca-cycle ago, you don’t have to worry about me when you have an entire clan to worry about. I just went out to find Nautica and First Aid, that’s all.”

The next Father looked into his future Inamorata’s optics thoughtfully before nodding in defeat. “Okay, okay I’ll try to not worry so much.” Mirage smiled and kissed the green mech’s helm before playfully pushing him away. “Well since you’re feeling so independent, how about you help me with the mecha-animals?”

Mirage’s face instantly twisted in disgust, but he allowed his lover to drag him off to the pins. Jazz put his servos immediately onto his son and daughter’s shoulders, and led them to the mountain for a stern talking to. The future leaders of the clan were cleaning the chronohorse pen while the older younglings were doing the zap ponies pen. The ex-noble was trying to finish the job as fast as possible while Hound was occasionally looking over at his lover with a smile going on his face. After about the tenth time of him looking to not so subtly ogle at Mirage that he realized that his digits were becoming invisible and then visible again. He gently touched his wrist to get the mech’s attention, “hey, what’s wrong?”

“I just realized that one cycle I’m going to be a leader of something. And then what if I hadn’t found your siblings in time, and they were taken back to the city?” Mirage stopped shoveling the pile of frozen acid so he could look into Hound’s optics with concern for the future.

“You are doing an amazing job Raj, if you’re really concern about becoming the Inamorata, Jazz can help you. That’s the purpose of the Inamorata, to help those in the clan that need help.” Hound spoke confidently with his big goofy smile.

Mirage stood straight with a puzzled expression, “help the clan?”

“Yeah! And you’re a natural Raj, you’ve done so much to help us since you’ve been here.” Hound smiled and went in to give Mirage a kiss, but there was a loud rumble in the distance and then drops fell from the sky. The white and blue mech dropped the shovel in his hold in reaction to him covering the top of his shoulder. The green mech went over and to examine him, but he stopped when a drop landed on the top of his helm.

“Big storm coming in! Everyone inside!” Trailbreaker called out while keeping the younglings in order. The younglings, being a tad over dramatic, started screaming as if they were set on fire and ran for the inside of the mountain. The black mech gave a small sigh, “there’s no need to panic little bolts.”

The adults ran inside as the storm was slowly rolling in. Mirage looked at his shoulder with a small frown at the small acid burn on his frame. The next Father touched the small gray spot in silence. “It doesn’t look too bad. We’ll just have to clean that shoulder off to avoid it melting anything else.”

“Alright,” he looked outside to the still open gates with a worried expression. “What about the others out there? And the gates?”

“They’ll be fine, they’ve probably found some shelter to wait out the storm. As for the gates, we’ll just have to figure it out once we make sure everyone is okay.” Hound rested a servo on the Mirage’s back and guided him up to his family’s level. The mechs went to their shared room where the green mech went to the shelf that had the bowl and cleaning rag. Mirage sat on the edge of the berth with a relieved sigh at getting off his peds. “The pack is going to be recharging at the entrance of the mountain just in case something decided to snoop around.”

Mirage nodded silently while Hound carefully rubbed the damp cloth across the burnt area on the shoulder guard. They were silently watching Hound clean him off before Mirage’s attention was tilted up towards the mech in front of him. “Yes?” His voice was very soft as to not draw attention to the room. Hound chuckled before going over to the light crystals near the doorway of his room, and placed the dome over top of it. The mech walked back over and wrapped the cloth around Mirage’s neck, and brought their lips together gently.

“Nothing, I just think it’s a little chilly in here.” Hound smoothly hinted at which was rewarded with a gently purr. Mirage was gently pushed onto his back with the green mech leaning back in for a kiss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Updates may be slower than normal, working on a top secret special mission ;)


	17. Chapter 17

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Starts off with a little love making then Mirage hunting to fuel the clan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the river doesn't have a name to the clan, but to the rest of Cybertron it's called Trannis Fork RiverT

Ch. 17

The Iaconian moaned softly when he felt Hound rub a servo between his legs. He grasped at the berth as his mouth opened up and was on the verge of moaning out loud, but the next Father was quick to silence him with a deep kiss. Mirage onlined his optics and opened his legs with a tiny whimper. “Hound, you are been rather cruel.”

“I am not being cruel.” Hound whispered before grinning up at the mech beneath him when he heard the click of the panels. Mirage covered his mouth when Hound’s face moved between his legs. “I’m showing you a good time.” He took a long drag of his glossa against the leaking valve. Mirage squirmed under the larger frame when the glossa continued to swipe against the protoflesh.

Hound pulled away and licked his lips clean as he watched the lubricant pool underneath the mech’s aft. Mirage squirmed and his aft lifted up slightly when the action stopped. The green mech grabbed the white and blue mech’s thighs and lifted him up to his face. The ex-noble gasped and arched while holding onto the thermal blanket when he felt the slightly rough glossa dip further into his valve. “Hound, I’m going to over… overload.”

“Really?” Hound questioned as he continued to lick his future Inamorata. Mirage nodded and was gasping for intakes when the glossa dragged harder against the anterior node. His entire frame tensed before he overloaded hard and collapsed onto the berth. Hound’s plating slid open and he turned around quickly with his legs folded together and his servos wrapped around his spike. Mirage was panting softly while his cooling fans were going off silently.

When he was finally able to control himself, Mirage went over to Hound’s side and took ahold of the spike just like he did the first time. The green mech groaned behind sealed lips when the digits around the deflated knot tightly very slightly. Mirage started slowly moving his other servo, while moving to straddle his lap. “Hound, I wish to try something. But I don’t know if either of us will be able to restrain ourselves.”

“I agree, soon we will be to do what we want. The melting point could be a good time for a bonding ceremony.” The next Father leaned against his servos while moaning softly when the blue servo moved along the length. “Raj, more.”

The mech complied with a smile and scooted closer with his valve opening up slowly. Hound’s helm shot up and he looked at Mirage with optics wide, but the future Inamorata smiled with his field merging with Hound’s. The white and blue mech tilted his frame slightly until his valve was pressed against the bottom of Hound’s spike. “Is this _more_ enough of you?”

“_Raj_, we have to be careful.” Hound was speaking heavily, trying hard not to become lost in the pleasure but with Mirage it was hard to be in control. The Iaconian bit his digit and continued to press his valve against the spike. The green mech gasped as his lover rubbed his valve against his spike. “Raj.”

Never in a million centuries did Mirage think he was going to find enjoyment in interfacing, especially when he knew he was going to be destined to produce any mech he was bonded to an heir. Hound wasn’t one of those mechs that he had seen among his social circle, who would completely ignore their mate until they needed to produce sparklings, no Hound was so much more than that. Hound always made sure Mirage was the first to overload, the first cleaned, the first everything. If they remained in the cities, Mirage could tell that his lover would have been beyond miserable. The ex-noble was pulled out of his thoughts when he was flipped over onto his front with his aft being lifted against Hound. He gasped and reached behind him to push the green mech away. “Hound, Hound no.”

Hound stopped briefly thinking he hurt Mirage, but when he didn’t see any injuries his face furrowed in confusion. “Do you not wish to interface with your port?”

“P-Port!?” Mirage panicked and everything closed up with him flipping onto his back to shield that part of him. His optics were wide in fear and distraught at the very notion of doing it in such a revolting area. Hound quickly covered the smaller mech’s mouth when he heard shifting coming from one of the rooms. The white and blue mech eventually snapped out of it and pulled the servo away from his mouth. He started whisper yelling at the mech on top of him. “My port Hound? Are you crazy? That’s… that’s vile and gross. And something pleasure bots do.”

_Oh, who are you kidding Mirage? You sucked his spike twice and was just rubbing up against him with the eager of one._ Mirage was now in a panic which brought both of them out of their mood. Hound sat back on his peds with clear confusion by his panic. “A pleasure… bot? What is a pleasure bot?”

“Someone who interfaces for credits or a place to recharge.” He moved further up the berth with his knees being hugged to his chest as he started to think of being used like a simple stress reliever.” Hound moved beside him, pulling Mirage into his hold slowly.

Mirage covered his face with a terrified sound. The green mech pulled the thermal blanket over the mech to provide a bit of space between them. “I’m sorry Raj, I didn’t know that the outlands did not think all aspects of interfacing. If you do not want to interface with your port, then we won’t do it okay?”

“I am okay with that. I’m sorry for ruining the mood, I just… I don’t think I’m ready for _that_.” The mech pulled the blanket closer to him as he laid his helm on Hound’s lap. The green mech put a servo hesitantly on the blue helm and started gently rubbing the back of his vent. A soft purring of an engine was enough sign that this action was relaxing for his intended.

When Hound onlined he nearly shouted when he saw Jazz looming over him. The Polyhexian was quick to cover his mouth and put a digit to his lips. He slowly stepped back and gestured for him to follow. The green mech looked behind him to see that Mirage was curled up beside him with Hellhound and Nyx curling up near him. Deciding that his future Inamorata was safe, Hound got out and followed Jazz out of the room. They were quietly walking up the hall before Jazz stopped to peak in his siblings’ rooms to make sure they were still recharging. The future Father didn’t understand why Jazz onlined him so early in the solar cycle; there was still three groons before the first sun even peaked over the horizon.

The pair made it out to the main room where a small fire was going to keep the room at least somewhat bearable. Jazz sat down on the floor near the fire and gave the spot beside him a couple pats. Hound lowered beside him and released a curious sound. The Polyhexian held onto his ankles in thought, looking like he had been stressed out about something. “I’ve been thinking, about First Aid. What if he leaves the clan? How will we see him to know he’s alright? What if being away from his gestalt hurts him? What if any of your siblings carry the coding and their own creations are forced to make the same decision?”

“Jazz, Aid is a smart youngling just like you and Sire. If he wants to be with _them_, then he’s going to go. Inferno is there too, so he won’t be without clan. He can always come and see us, but we both know you’ll sneak over to the outlands to see him.” Hound chose to answer the easiest questions first before going on to the harder ones. “Can’t Triage and Flatline look to see if any of them have the code? I know nothing on these types of bots, but if he is hurting I’ll take him to his gestalt personally. Clan protects clan.”

He pressed his helm against Jazz’s and hugged him in attempt to comfort him. The Polyhexian hugged him back as he silently let tears fall. Jazz poked his helm up to see First Aid standing in the hallway while rubbing his visors. He pulled away from Hound while trying to hide the fact he had been crying. “F-First Aid, what are you doing up so early?”

“You’re field was loud. Why are you sad Carrier?” The youngling slid his peds across the floor until he forced himself into his creator’s arms. He purred as nuzzled the Polyhexian, “Carrier, why are you still sad?”

Jazz shook his helm with a sad smile, “I just am sad that you won’t be my precious little youngling forever.” He lied to prevent his son feeling bad for something that won’t happen yet. The visored mech kissed the other visored mech on the tip of his nose before being hugged around the neck by the youngling.

“Carrier?” First Aid was answered with a hum. “I don’t want to be with my spark friends, if it makes you sad.”

Jazz pulled away with a surprise flicker of his field. The white and red mech put his servo on the larger mech’s cheek plate, “why you little lääkäri. First Aid, if you wish to be with them then I won’t be upset.”

The youngest mech’s visors brightened to replace a smile. “I want my spark friends to meet the clan. Will Sire let them meet everyone?”

“I don’t believe so sweetspark, if they find the clan then they’d have to stay here.” Jazz saw the disappointed look in the visors, but he could tell First Aid understood what he meant. “Now, you my little mech need to go recharge again.”

“Okay Carrier.” The youngling said enthusiastically before going back down the hall.

Mirage onlined to an empty berth, causing him to sit up with the confused expression. “Hound?”

He got out of the berth and left the room to see where the green mech had gone. The mech noticed that there was no one inside Jazz’s and Ultra Magnus’s level. Mirage left the mountain, immediately noticing that a majority of the clan was not present. He went over to CatSCAN by the mechanimal pen. “CatSCAN where is everyone?”

“Father and future Father along with a few others have gone past the mountain to hunt. The Inamorata took some of the warriors to the mountains to gather energon.” The mech looked over with a small flicker of worry laced in his field. “They’ve been gone for four groons and there’s a massive cold storm coming through.”

Mirage frowned at the information, wondering why they left without him. The Iaconian rubbed the back of his helm in thought of what he could possibly do to help. He noticed that a lot of the younglings were gathered at the mouth of their home with fear of leaving now that their numbers were so small. _I’ll have to figure out how to bring them all home. _The mech looked back at the paimen, “is there anything I can do to help?”

“Not with that monster rolling in. It’s too dangerous.” The feline’s tail flicked behind him. Mirage hummed as he looked at the gate on an idea for a way to help, then an idea came to mind. He bid his farewell before hurrying back up to Hound’s room, he didn’t tell the mech that First Aid suckered him into bringing back a ton of energon gel cubes. It would be enough to fuel the younglings while he went out to find something for the clan.

When he went back down to the mountain base, all of the younglings were huddled together, not playing with the lack of energy. With them was Scylla and Bumblebee, who was trying so hard to cheer the youngest members of the clan up. Seeing the future Inamorata walk straight to them with his servos behind his back. Mirage smiled down at all of the faces that looked up at him with sad dull optics. “I have a something for all of you to keep you fueled until Father and Inamorata comes back. I’m going to go out just a little away from the camp and try to find something for the clan, but I promise to come back. Would you like to try it?”

All of the mechlings and femmelings nodded with a new found excitement. They gathered around his peds and Mirage showed off the bag, First Aid knew instantly what was inside and he started telling his friends about how amazing they were when he saw how confused they were. Mirage lowered to their level and started handing them out to them, making sure there was one for each of them. He looked at Bumblebee, him still being a youngling and offered one to him. Bumblebee shook his helm with a smile. “I’m okay Mirage, thanks. They need it more than I do.”

“Okay little ones, what do you tell future Inamorata Mirage for his gifts?” Scylla was trying to teach the youngest younglings manners. Some of them actually tried to politely say thank you while the others were asking for more. Mirage stood up so the bag was out of reach. “Thrust, no you have to share. Mirage was being nice to share with all of you.”

The small Seekerling stomped his ped and went back to reaching for the bag. “More!”

“Thrust, there’s not enough for all of you to have seconds.” Mirage put the bag in the satchel that he had slung across his body. There was a small chill that blew through the camp. The younglings all cried out in sounds of discomfort, huddling around the watchers and Mirage for warmth.

The white and blue mech went over to the pack that looked like they were having about as much luck at finding fuel as they were. He knelt down in front of Hellhound, getting the massive Cyberwolf’s attention. “I need your help.” The alpha of the pack looked in his optics before huffing and rose to his peds. With a flash of a smile, Mirage and Hellhound left the camp to find something. The mechanimal started sniffing around for a trail, but the wind kept changing direction and every lead he’d get just made the creature more agitated. Mirage was trying to recall something that Hound had told him when they went on their annual hunting. Unlike in the cities where they had to have at least two to three cubes a solar cycle, the clan only hunted three solar cycles every seven solar cycles. The energon they would harvest was plenty potent enough to keep them fueled for at least ten solar cycles.

“The river!” The exclamation got the cyberwolf to look immediately up at the smiling mech. Mirage met his optics and gestured for him to follow after his running form. Mirage remembered that Hound said that the river would freeze at just the top layer, leaving the rest of it free flowing. They came to a stop at the edge of the river bank and just below the frozen surface, Mirage could see the swimming fishoids without a care in the world. “Question is, how to get them. Any ideas Hellhound?” Mirage looked down at the red cyberwolf, but only received a gruff grunt.

It was beyond dark by the time Hound and everyone returned from the solar cycle long hunting trip, Jazz and his group had been mining energon while Ultra Magnus and his group hunted. They were concerned that with the amount of hunters in the wilds that it drove the forest creatures to the other side of the wilds to avoid capture. There was smoke rising from a pyre crystal and cheering which they all looked at each other with confusion, but entered to see that those that had remained behind were all smiles and were very happy with something. They dropped their hunts in the designated spot, Hound picked up the helm of a gutted fishoid and smelt it. “It’s fresh, but how?”

Jazz looked to the where the party was at and smiled proudly with that of a creator. He gestured at Mirage who was being hugged and overall congratulated by the clan members that volunteered to stay behind. “I’d say Mirage will fit in just fine Hound. He will make a great Inamorata.”

“He… all of this?” Hound was in a moment of disbelief that Mirage actually went out and killed something. He knew Mirage was absolutely terrified at the sheer thought of killing anything so close.

Mirage did a double take and a big smile appeared on his face when he saw the mech of his life. He maneuvered through the crowd, jogging over to Hound, and jumped into his arms. At this moment he didn’t care if they were dripping with spilt energon or not, he had missed the green mech all solar cycle. “Hound, you’re back. I’ve missed you so much.”

“Raj, you hunted? By yourself?” The green mech was still stuck on the idea that his intended mate had hunted.

The ex-noble lowered back to his peds with a scoff, “don’t be ridiculous. I let Hellhound kill them. You know I don’t like to kill anything. I dragged them out of the river and carried them. Triage already beat me with a pipe for sticking my arm in the river.”

“Oh, Raj you are amazing. I can’t believe you actually did this.” Hound finally squeezed Mirage with a proud flare of his field. He sat Mirage down after he started tapping out and called uncle several times. “Looks like we’ll be able to last probably till the end of the freezing solstice before we hunt again. Right Sire?”

Ultra Magnus looked at the pile while he waited for Jazz to return with their energon. “Just barely, but with all of the energon that Jazz and the others gathered we will be fine without hunting for a while.” He looked at the others, speaking loud enough for everyone to hear. “Until further notice, no more hunting. We will let the mechanimals grow. Until the Paimen declare that the numbers are no longer in dangerous levels, if anyone is suspected to hunt they will be punished with guard duty for a meta-cycle.”

The entire clan looked up at the giant and answered all at once. “Yes Father.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How are ya'll liking Delta Darya so far? I'm still waiting on the artwork for it, but when it's finished I will be sure to link it :)


	18. Chapter 18

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The outlands and the clan make a trade; the hunters for the deactivated bodies of the clan. First Aid meets Defensor.

Ch. 18

Like how the cold came it had to go. It took four solar cycles for any signs of the freeze to melt away. Once it was melted, Triage and Flatline were playing catch up on the sparkling and youngling frame upgrades. At this point in time, Mirage had to focus on the trade between the outlands and the wilds. He had no idea where in the world these mechs were being held at, but he could tell they were at least well taken care of. With him were Ultra Magnus, Hound, Jazz, Trailbreaker, BombBurst, and Blackshadow. Mirage tried to talk Hound out of bringing Hellhound, but the green mech claimed it was to keep the hunters in line. Across from them was his aunt and uncle, Red Alert, Prowl, Inferno, Ratchet, and a strange red mech with a telescope on his shoulder.

Jazz looked at Mirage and smiled at him. “_Just follow my lead._” He nodded at the Polyhexian before the mech stepped forward with confidence in his field and stance. “Welcome to the Wilds, I’m glad to see that you made it safely to the meeting place. We have brought the hunters, examine them if you wish.” He looked over at the Seeker and the blue mech, they grabbed the five mechs and femmes from the ground and stepped closer to the outlanders.

“Thank you for keeping them online, I know their families will be relieved to know that they are online.” Optimus nodded his thanks as Red Alert and Prowl took the hunters.

“Oh, come on, it’s not like it’s _their _forest! We have a right to be here as much as these freaks do!” One of the hunters started thrashing around in Prowl’s firm hold. “Primus let me go!”

“_I like the Praxian._” Ultra Magnus heard his mate laugh when the winged mech flipped the mech onto the ground and pinned his arm at an angle that caused him to scream.

“Fragger you broke my arm!” The mech continued to kick before Prowl punched him hard on the side of the helm, knocking him out. He stood up and looked at the other hunters with an intense glare in his optics, and his wings flared. They stiffened in Red Alert and Inferno’s servo, no longer resisting in their holds.

_“Inferno, it is great to see that you’re online and safe. Are they treating you well?_” Trailbreaker asked his longtime friend. Those with the Prime could tell that Inferno was excited to see that his friends and family were doing good.

_“They saved me from taking my life. I found my sparkmate too! We knew the astrosecond I laid my optics on him_.” Inferno smiled down at the mech that was clearly not pleased at not being able to understand him. “_Sucks that he won’t let me spike him._”

The other warriors threw their helms back in laughter, but Jazz was quick to snuff that out. “Inferno! You be more respectful, especially when they are your mate! Now apologize, you may be with the outlanders now but don’t _think_ I won’t make you run laps around this slagging forest. All of you!”

Inferno and the warriors instantly shut up and bowed their helms with murmurs of apologies. Mirage went to give his family a farewell, but the ground shook underneath them. Everyone had to brace themselves as it continued before a massive mech, with the trees standing waist length against him. His torso was blue, a red and white right arm that looked to be a helicopter, a pair of white legs, and a missing limb. The clans mechs were getting ready to react, but Optimus waved an arm to get their attention.

“No don’t it’s the Protectobots.” He tapped his helm trying to comm the titan. He looked at his mate with a shake of his helm, “Defensor’s comm system isn’t working. Why is he here? He never leaves Iacon.”

Jazz and the others of the clan looked over at Ultra Magnus for his thoughts. “_Is this what First Aid will look like?_” He looked at Mirage for an explanation.

“_He’ll become the missing limb when he is able to transform._” The white and blue mech looked up at the giant mech.

:_Father, First Aid is missing! One of the younglings said they saw him walk away from the group._: Scylla had worry in her voice as she tried to shush the younglings with her.

The Father looked down at his mate who had worry on his face. He looked up at the titan that looked to be going for the plateaus. :_Keep everyone in the camp._: Ultra Magnus looked at BombBurst and Trailbreaker. “_Take our deactivated to the camp. Jazz, you come with me. Mirage, Hound see to it that the outlanders are returned to the border._”

Mirage looked at his uncle and then at Ultra Magnus with a slight frown. “_There has to be a reason they came here._”

“_Don’t argue with me Mirage_.” Ultra Magnus used that tone that Mirage was used to hear at this point. The Father looked at the warriors that were quick to take the pods to their camp. He gave his mate’s shoulder a small touch, getting him to come out of his thoughts.

“Right, we will have to end this meeting. Mirage and Hound will see you back to the border. I’ll be sure to return your titan friend to you when we find them.” Jazz spoke to the outlanders before looking at Ratchet, quickly looking nervous. “Will my youngling be safe? Is this that bond that brought a titan into the wilds?”

“First Aid will be fine unless he wishes to sever the bond with them in the future. Sometimes in times of distress a gestalt will just subconsciously gather together to comfort the bond. If Defensor is here, then something is stressing out the bond.” The medic explained before looking at the red mech that was silent at them. “Right, this mech is Preceptor. He was among one of the captured mechs in the black market. The thing is-”

“_I am not an outlander. I come from the clan that did reside near the Mithril Sea._” The mech named Preceptor crossed his arms as his microscope on his shoulder rotated slightly. The four wilds mechs all looked at each other with surprise, especially when Ultra Magnus walked closer to the mech and got down onto on knee to get in his face. “_My entire clan was bombed from some Seekers that were with the hunters. I was crushed under my hut, whoever was online were taken to where they sell our kind._”

“_Are you requesting to join our clan? I wasn’t aware any other clans survived the war._” The Father kept his optics cold as the red mech answered him.

“_No, but I came here to inform you that I am able to help with repairs and keeping First Aid as well as Inferno safe while in the outlands.”_ Preceptor looked over at Ratchet and then back at the Father. “_You’re the clan’s Father and you know that the first duty of the Father is to protect the clan at any cost. If you have myself as well as your own creation in the outlands, we could find a way to defend the clan from any foreign viruses._”

Jazz rubbed his helm in thought before nodding in agreement with that statement. “_It would be helpful to Triage and Flatline. I think you should accept his offer, Father._”

Ultra Magnus slowly rose to his peds with his frame opening to vent out extra heat. He nodded before transforming with Jazz resting a servo on his hips and a shake of his helm. “We thank you returning our deactivated. We will find your mechs, shouldn’t be too hard to find. Mirage, Hound please take them to the border.”

“_Yes Inamorata_.” They both said before stepping towards Optimus and Elita’s group. Mirage watched how Hound just took the lead, which got him to chuckle at how instinctive to take the lead was to him. Elita was quick to glue herself to her nephew’s side, taking his servo into hers with her field excited. Inferno, Red Alert, and Prowl were escorting their prisoners.

“Your arm looks beautiful. I’m relieved to see that the exchange went well.” The pink femme smiled at her nephew while admiring the artwork on his forearm that was connected to the servo she was holding.

Mirage smiled down at it, “yeah Jazz’s daughter Nautica thought I needed a paint job update. Jazz decided to play the level-helmed mech today, normally that mech is like Prowl on boosters.” The mech chuckled before looking at Preceptor who was stiffly walking beside Ratchet. “Now I know why you thought he was part of the clan. It turns out he is from the wilds, but not Hound’s clan. He came from the Mithril Sea.”

“Amazing! I didn’t think anyone could survive so close to the sea!” She looked absolutely astonished at the revelation. “Primus works in mysterious ways.” The ex-noble nodded as he locked optics with the green mech that was unintentionally attracting small avians to him, that apparently thought he made a good perch.

In the plateaus First Aid was resetting his optics with a shake of his helm when he looked around in confusion. He didn’t know why he was out of the camp until his confusion was replaced with fear when he was feeling the ground tremble underneath him. The mech looked around with tears welling up behind his visors. “C-Carrier? S-Sire? Carrier!” He dropped to the ground and cried into his servos while the noise only grew louder until a final thud caused him to whimper, thinking it was a giant Predacon come to eat him.

There was the sound of transformation caused the youngling to look up before he stopped crying, but continued sniffling when he saw the four Protectobots all looking equally confused as he did. Grooves looked around with that typical question when confused and lost. “Where are we? How did we get here?”

“I’m clocking that we were combined for three groons, but I don’t remember calling for a combination.” Hot Spot answered before seeing the youngling that was sitting in front of them. The blue mech knelt down, “First Aid? What are you doing all the way out here? Do you know where we are?”

Blades transformed and First Aid gasped and quickly ran over to him, smacking the glass with no actual pain being inflicted. “No, no they like flying things.” He pointed to the sky just as a herd of equine-looking creatures stampeded through a field in the distance. Blades started up his rotors, but a large creature with smooth x-wings that spun around its body making a sound that could only sound like a baritone song. The adults all gasped as they watched it fly over the herd. First Aid covered his face just as the all too familiar sound of the equine herd’s targeting systems locking onto the creature screamed through. The largest of the herd had large rockets unlock from its back legs, successfully hitting the large creature. The flying mechanimal cried out in pain as it fell out of the sky.

Blades was quick to transform when he watched the herd cover the creature and quickly ran off after only astroseconds, leaving nothing behind. “Okay, yeah I’m not going airborne.”

“Big brother Beachcomber won’t even try talking to them. They’re _really_ scary, scarier than scraplets.” He looked around with a hum and he oohed in excitement. “I know where we are! Come on, I’ll take you to camp! I can show you my room an’ an’ and where I’ll be learning how to be a lääkäri. And Comber could show you his technohawk friend! She took him flying, Carrier was mad at him for going by himself, but it was really cool!”

The youngling squealed and quickly ran past the baffled Protectobots. He looked over his shoulder and waved for them to follow him. “I mean, he’s a youngling what could he possibly do to us?”

“It’s not _him_ I’m worried about, it’s what’s in that forest, Street.” Hot Spot led them to First Aid as he ran through. It was a groon of walking before the youngling stopped and went over to a tree. “First Aid, what are you doing?”

“Too small to see Primus tree.” He tried to climb the tree, but he could get a good grip. The youngling yelped and looked behind him to see that he was in a giant servo that was connected to an equally giant mech. “Woah, you’re the big mech from my stasis!”

His gaze was soon locked onto the missing limb and the youngling covered his mask. “Your arm is missing.”

“Left arm: First Aid. Too young. Designation: Defensor.” He slowly rose to his full height and looked around. “Bond: Sensed sadness from member.”

First Aid held onto the large digit closest to him and nodded with a sad expression on what he could. “I missed my spark friends. Carrier has been sad that I may want to be with my spark friends in the outlands. The outlander lääkäri said that it would make us all feel better, and our sparks wouldn’t hurt anymore, but I don’t want to leave Carrier forever. And Mimi’s uncle said that you can’t leave the outlands to live with us.”

“Defensor’s mission: Protect Cybertron. Creator’s concerns: Logical. First Aid: Can always visit family.” Defensor, when combined, was capable of making his own thoughts from the collective thoughts of those that formed him. “Gestalt: Can always speak through spark bond.”

The white and red mech’s visors brightened at the news, “really!? So, I won’t have to be lonely?” He pointed to the large tree, getting the titan to look in the direction. Defensor’s visors brightened with his mouth opening slightly. “When I’m almost grown up, Imma climb the Primus tree and plant my own pod. Sire says that we’re ‘sponsible to give back to the forest when we take. When I saw the outlands, I was sad that the outlanders don’t give back. Carrier said that outlanders were trying to make us live like them, but I’m glad that we don’t have too. It’s so pretty out here.”

“First Aid!” A voice called down from below. The titan and youngling looked down to see the Inamorata and Father looking up at them. “Can you please come down!?”

Defensor started uncombining with Hot Spot holding First Aid until he leapt out of his arms, running for his Carrier’s arms. “Carrier, you found me! Carrier, Sire my spark friends came to see me!”

“First Aid, why did you leave the camp? You know it’s not safe for you to wander out without anyone.” Jazz was more focused on his youngling than his mate who was giving the outlanders his signature disapproving glare. “Where did you even go?”

The youngling pointed behind him, “to the plateaus. It was like I was recharging, I onlined there. I was so scared until my spark friends found me! I’m sorry for leaving Carrier.”

“_We are just glad you are alright._” Ultra Magnus assured his youngest creation.

Jazz finally decided to acknowledge the mechs that where watching patiently. He stood up with a gentle servo on the youngling’s shoulder. “Hello, I am Jazz, little Aid’s Carrier as well as the clan’s Inamorata. And this is Ultra Magnus, his Sire _and _the Father, leader, of the clan. Thank you for saving my precious spark, I don’t know what I would have done if I lost him.”

Groove was silent before he gasped as if something clicked. “Wait… Jazz, as in _the _Jazz? The one that was part of Sonar’s orchestra before mysteriously disappearing!?"

"Huh, thought everyone forgot who I was. I was, once upon a time, from that mech’s orchestra before I was kindly disposed of. But that’s in the past.” Jazz waved it off with a smile before leaning down to gently nudge First Aid’s helm with happy purr. “Tell your friends goodbye, I have to take them back to the outlands.”

First Aid frowned and whined slightly before he felt this overwhelming feeling of comfort coming from his spark. He gasped and whipped his helm up to the four mechs that all nodded their helms as if knowing what he was thinking. The youngling ran to them and jumped into each of their arms to hug them, and even touched their forehelms together before returning to his Sire’s side. “I wanna protect Cybertron with you and Defensor when I’m all grown up!”

“Well better start growing pipsqueak.” Blades said with a playful tone. Jazz gestured for them to follow him. First Aid stood by his creator waving to the mechs that he would feel in his spark for all his functioning, but wouldn’t see until many orns.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What did you guys think about youngling First Aid? Because I find him so cute.


	19. Chapter 19

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Beachcomber focused chapter part 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The wild mechanimals have gone missing and a certain young paimen is determined to find out where they've gone.

Ch. 19

Mirage was playing with Nyx in the middle of the camp. He noticed that Hound was acting oddly tense, which the future Inamorata found strange because he wasn’t in heat. He wondered if maybe one of the femmes or carrier mechs were in heat. The white and blue mech was watching him wrestling with BombBurst, but even with the distance between them Mirage could tell that he was forcing himself to focus.

“Inamorata,” the mech looked up with a baffled look when he saw SharpEdge and Javelin walking up to them. _She must have seen something._ He slowly stood up while the warrior continued, “there’s been a disturbance near the mountains.”

“Where’s Jazz at? Shouldn’t you be asking him?” Mirage frowned as he was looking around for the Polyhexian.

SharpEdge shook his helm with a frown, “he’s busy with gathering pyre stones in the far north quadrant.”

The next Inamorata rubbed his neck with an uncertain look in his optics. He started biting the inner lining of his cheek plate before he looked at them warrior with a nod. “Okay, what is it that you need help with?”

“There’s been a strange lack of avians found, a lot of their nests are empty. Something has scared the wildlife away.” The Sharkticon put his servo on Javelin’s shoulder. “Young Javelin came to me; she’s seen something recently cause well she can’t talk.”

Javelin nodded before pointing at the Nosorons and then at the mountains in the distance. Mirage rubbed his chin with a thoughtful hum. He looked over at Hound, who was with Apelinq and Swerve, and then back at the mech in front of him. “Has anyone seen outlanders in the forest?”

“So far it’s been outlander free.” SharpEdge rested his weight onto one ped. “Do you want a scouting party sent out?”

“Let me talk to Hound first.” The white and blue mech hurried over to his future spark mate.

Hound stood up with a smile on his face, “hey Raj,” he kissed him on the cheek. “Did you need something?”

“SharpEdge said that Javelin saw something, and it has to do with the mechanimals near the Manganese Mountains.” Mirage folded his arms with a slight frown. “I think we should send a scouting party to find out if something is happening.”

Hound hummed in thought before turning his full attention to his future mate. “I don’t think a scouting party is necessary.”

“But Javelin saw something, and it has to do with the mechanimals. Come on this could affect the entire wilds. Just a small scouting party.” Mirage gestured for a general direction behind him. “What if there is something truly wrong?”

“They could just be hiding while repopulating. I don’t think there’s anything to worry about it.” The green mech put his servos on his waist, not wanting to waste the clan’s time to look for mechanimals.

A crashing sound drew their attention to the zap pony and chronohorse pen. Beachcomber was in there trying to calm down one of the foals, but it was fidgeting and was trying to knock him away. Outback and CatSCAN leapt over the fence, and pulled the youngling out of the fence. The foal started bucking and making sounds of distress. Mirage and Hound rushed over to the crying youngling.

“Beachcomber, what happened? Are you okay?” The Iaconian asked as he lowered down to his level. The youngling shook his helm with his gaze going back to the still bucking foal.

“I-I was just feeding him a treat and then he started not listening to me anymore. I tried to get him to calm down, but then he tried to bite me.” Beachcomber leaned against the tan minibot that was holding onto him. “Po-ku never acted like this before.”

CatSCAN’s receptors flicked around and shook his helm, “there’s nothing nearby. We’re going to have to isolate him from the herd.”

“No!” Beachcomber jumped away from his trainers with his arms out in a sad attempt to shield the foal from them. “He’ll be sad without the others. You can’t take him away!”

Outback pointed at the foal that was kicking at the fence. “If there is something wrong with him, then we can’t risk the rest of the herd could get whatever it is. It will only be for a little bit.”

Beachcomber frowned as he watched CatSCAN get into the pen and dragged the foal away from the herd and his carrier. “Po-ku, no bring him back!” He tried to make a run for his friend, but Hound and Mirage grabbed the youngling to keep him away from the braying foal that was being taken away from any of the mechanimals. Beachcomber pushed away from his brother and ran for the mountain.

It was the lunar cycle and Beachcomber peeked outside his, Bumblebee’s and Javelin’s room. He looked up and down the hall before tiptoeing to the main room and grabbed a thermal blanket off one of the shelves, and then found his Carrier’s secret stash of energon crystals that was tucked underneath a box that they used for storage. He quickly snuck out of his family’s level and hurriedly snuck out of the mountain. The youngling followed the sound of his friend’s cries to the isolated pen that was in the farthest corner of the camp. The foal was running his helm against the fence post while digging his hoof at the ground.

Po-ku must have sensed the young paimen because he stopped what he was doing and turned to face Beachcomber. He stared neighing loudly, and Beachcomber held his filled servos out. “Po-ku it’s okay. It’s me, Beachcomber, remember me? It’s okay. Po-ku, _listen to my voice._” He extended his arm with the blanket out to the foal that was still resisting him. “Tell me what you need. Tell me and I will take you there.”

The foal started bobbing his helm as he stomped his front hooves. _Not safe. Get away. Friend not safe. _Beachcomber went to the pen and kept the blanket between them just in case. _Friend not safe. Friend not safe._ Po-ku kept repeating that before he started bucking. The white and blue youngling stepped back with a whimper. “Po-ku, if you don’t help me then Outback and CatSCAN are going to take you away from me. What do you mean it’s not safe?”

_Young friend._ Beachcomber turned and saw Hellhound sitting behind him with his usual intense stare. He knelt down with his arms wrapped around his neck, in need of comfort. _The chronohorse is right, it’s not safe. There is something still in the forest. There is nothing to hunt, the forest is quiet. Listen with your gift of beast._

Beachcomber pulled away from the alpha cyberwolf and looked over at his friend. He stood up with a heavy ex-vent before his visors started rippling with coding and he expanded his field to the edge of the camp. Usually Beachcomber could feel hundreds of mechanimal fields without expanding his field, but he felt nothing. Not even a petro-rabbit could be felt. After giving up his search, Beachcomber shrank his field back and then quickly whipped his helm to Po-ku. “The mechanimals are missing, how? So, Po-ku isn’t sick? How come no one else is acting funny?”

_We don’t know. The chronohorse is not sick, he just wishes to help just like you. He is young._ Hellhound watched the mech walk over to his friend and held out his servo. Po-ku slowly walked over to Beachcomber, nibbling at the servo that was hiding the energon. The young paimen laughed as he gave his friend one of the small crystals. Po-ku whinnied when he clearly enjoyed the treat. Beachcomber cheered as he hugged his friend’s face.

“Come on, we’re going to go find our mechanimal friends.” Beachcomber went to the gate and untied the twinge that was holding the gate sealed. He carefully tossed the blanket on his back, and carefully tide a makeshift a harness around Po-ku’s helm. Beachcomber kept his servo on his friend and quietly led him to the front entrance before he froze at the sight of Scylla and BombBurst standing by the entrance. He turned around and led his friend to the back entrance, he never went through that way because the adventurous younglings used it to sneak out at night. He carefully led Po-ku through the secret exit, and silenced him as they got further away from the camp.

“Po-ku, where do we start to look for our friends?” Beachcomber looked around with a frown, he didn’t like that the forest was quiet. Normally he could just call for the small avians to his room, and ask about their cycle. That was probably why his Carrier had that ‘no creatures in their flat after 1600’ rule.

_Watering hole? I wish I was big so I can carry you._ Po-ku bobbed his helm with a sad paw at the ground. Beachcomber hugged him around his neck to comfort his friend. The youngling let the foal lead them to the nearest watering hole even though his time with CatSCAN and Outback taught him all of the locations. Well that was until Beachcomber didn’t recognize the path they were going down. He looked around with a confused frown. “Po-ku, where are we going? Outback and CatSCAN never told me about this path.”

_Smell energon. Hungry._ Po-ku said as he nibbled his friend’s helm, getting him to giggle. _Still friends?_

“Yes! I wish you just told me, because now I have to convince Paimen Outback that you’re not sick.” Beachcomber lightly scolded him before giving him another crystal. The pair came across a shallow part of the stream. Beachcomber knelt down in front of it and touched it, he brought his stained digits to his face and took a sniff. “This smells funny. Don’t drink it Po-ku.”

_But I want energon_. Po-ku whinnied with his hoof digging at the ground. Beachcomber shook his helm and led him across the river. Something out of the corner of his optic caught the youngling’s attention. He went off the trail that the chronohorse foal seemed determined to follow. _Beachcomber, Beachcomber I don’t like this._

“But it’s strange.” He went over to the weird object that was hidden under brush. Beachcomber picked up the strange object and brought it closer to his face. “It doesn’t smell like wild. I wonder if it’s from the hunters that Sire gave back to Mirage’s uncle? Maybe Carrier knows.” Beachcomber gasped when he saw his servo look extremely tiny through the end of the weird object. “Woah, cool! It makes things up close look super small!”

Something caught his attention from the new entertainment. He jumped to his peds, holding the rectangular object to his chest. Po-ku started freaking out when a strange white and red mech landing in front of the youngling. The foal started rearing onto his back legs as he started panicking. Beachcomber put his servo onto his face, trying to calm him down. _Bad, smells bad. Smells bad._

“Po-ku, it’s okay.” Beachcomber tried to calm him down while the strange mech was talking to him. He shook his helm with a frown. “_I don’t know what you’re saying. Outlanders aren’t supposed to be in the forest anymore._”

“Starscream, what are you do-” Skywarp landed beside his friend before seeing the youngling staring at them with a whimper. “Woah, a youngling. Starscream, you think he can take us to his camp? I’m tired of taking care of all of the creatures you decided to capture for studying.”

“We need to be able to speak to him. And I’ve almost finished my studies on the beasts.” Starscream scoffed as he lowered down and held his servo out to show the youngling that he wasn’t going to hurt him. “Come on, I won’t hurt you.”

Beachcomber looked at the servo and stepped back with a whimper. He chucked the item at the Seeker before running away with him smacking Po-ku on his backside. “_Run back to camp!_” He ran deeper into the forest, getting immediately chased by the two Seekers. The white and blue youngling looked over his shoulder and ran faster. He tried whistling, trying to get anything’s attention. _Come on, they couldn’t have gotten you too!_ Beachcomber stumbled to a stop when he came to stop at an oil and energon fall. “Woah.”

There was the sound of engines roaring behind him. Beachcomber turned around and saw the Seekers transform and land behind him. He backed away slowly before pinning his limbs to his frame, curling his servos into fists and deactivated his visors as his field expanded. His visors soon lit up as coding appeared in them. “_Stay away from me!_”

“Come on kid, get away from there before you hurt yourself.” Skywarp tried to call the youngling back away from the ledge.

Beachcomber grabbed a rock that was nearby and threw it at them with a cry out. Starscream put his servos in the air, trying to get the only lead on the wild mechs. “Come on, all we want is to study you.”

“Oh, that’ll definitely get him to come with us Starscream. Why don’t we just tell him that you won’t dissect his processor like you did with those robo-raptors?!” Skywarp rolled his optics with his arms crossed. Beachcomber tried to make a run for it, but the black and purple mech warped close to him. “Oh no you don’t.”

Beachcomber slipped backwards and fell off the edge, screaming as the Seekers were quick to disappear from view. He whistled loudly before something caught him. The youngling reactivated his optics before gasping when his digits were holding tightly to the soft metal feathers that were apart of the creature that had saved him. “You’re safe! The outlanders didn’t get you?”

_As if I would allow such disgusting things to touch me. A lot of the forest creatures that they have missed are hiding in the plateaus and in the craigs._ The technohawk that had helped the youngling plant his pod flew up along the energon-oil fall, send some of it to splash upwards and splashing onto the Seekers that were staring up at them in shock. _You should not have come out here by yourself young land mech._

“I know, but I wanted to help my friends. Be careful, the purple one can appear in front of you.” Beachcomber warned just before the Seeker appeared in front of them. The technohawk stopped in midair, cawing loudly before it opened its beak and a burst of fire exploded from her mouth. The youngling felt along the technohawk’s neck, finding the cable that was hidden underneath the feathers. He opened his wrist and connected with her just as Starscream joined his trine mate in the sky, this time they were ready to attack. Beachcomber grabbed ahold of what he could of the technohawk before willing her to flying for the mountains.

_You connected with me. Why?_ She cawed and flew for the youngling’s desired destination. Beachcomber scanned looked behind them, as if the technohawk was an extension of himself she looked behind too. They looked back ahead and the technohawk flew up higher in hopes to dissuade the jets from following further. Beachcomber held tightly onto the avian as it released a large burst of fire and spun downwards, causing a tornado of fire to form around them. The technohawk flew faster, Beachcomber yelped when laser was shot at them.

_Don’t worry, they will not hurt us._ She sounded excited by the chase. The avian dove down when they came across the Sea of Rust. She only flew up when the wyrms would launch up from the red sand. Beachcomber kept his visors offlined and used the technohawk’s sight to see the world. The youngling never told his creators or his trainers about this part of his mod, because he feared they’d see him as weird. _You are very special beast talker. Not even your brother with beast senses can connect with us like you can._

“Hound told me that we’re like Father Onyx. Are the outlanders still following us?” Beachcomber shrank closer to the large avian to avoid the rust that flew up from the ground. He saw the avian turn her helm slightly to see that the Seekers had stopped following them with the wyrms launching up in attempts to catch them.

_Get some rest young one, it will be some time before we reach the peaks._ The technohawk informed the youngling as the moons had moved some since Beachcomber fled the camp. He nodded and with a small whimper, missing his family now that he was so far away from them. He knew his Carrier was going to punish him severely for running away, but he had to protect the forest from the outlanders that took the wildlife.


	20. Chapter 20

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Breem: 8.3 minutes
> 
> Vorn: 83 years
> 
> Cycle: 2 hours
> 
> Groon: 1 hour
> 
> Nano-klik: 1 second
> 
> Deca-cycle: 30 days
> 
> Deci-vorn: 8.3 years
> 
> Klik: 1.2 minutes
> 
> Mega-cycle: 93 hours
> 
> Meta-cycle: 13 months
> 
> Stellar cycle: 7.5 months
> 
> Astrosecond: .5 seconds
> 
> Solar cycle: 1 day
> 
> Lunar cycle: 1 night

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Beachcomber's little side story part 2

Ch. 20

Beachcomber onlined when he felt him being nudged. He sat up and rubbed his optics, “is it morning already Carrier?” The youngling looked around with a new and fearful expression. He didn’t recognize this place and looked around with his field rippling with fear. “Carrier? Sire? Carrier where are you?”

_Your creators are back at your home. Remember, I have brought you to our home so you can help save our kin._ The technohawk used her beak to lift the youngling off of her frame. _The bipedal fliers will not be able to find you; you will be safe with me._

“I want my Carrier.” Beachcomber sniffled as he looked up at the large avian. “I’m too small, I can’t help.”

_You are more capable to help us than you think. You will be able sneak into their den and free our kin._ She folded her wings as she led the bipedal youngling inside the large cave where a massive nest was safely inside. Beachcomber looked at the massive creature with curious expression.

“You think I could actually help, even if I’m small?” Beachcomber followed her to the nest. He sat on the ground near the nest, watching the avian climb inside which started up loud chirping sounds. The youngling got excited when he heard that sound and jumped to his peds. “Are those your creations? Can I see them?”

The technohawk lowered her beak to give the youngling an anchor to for her to lift him to the edge of her nest. Inside were two giant technohawk chicks that were pecking their creator’s claws for food. The youngling was trying to contain his excitement at how adorable the younglings were. “I thought you lived in the forest? Why are you in here?”

_The flying bipedals and their allies have come for our nests to steal our kind. I do not like this, but I did this to protect my hatchlings_. The technohawk flapped her wings a little before nudging her creations to get them to settle down. _Will you help us beast talker?_

“Mechanimals deserve freedom just like us!” Beachcomber was very aware that mechanimals may be friendly when they want to be, but they were still wild creatures that will do whatever they want even kill. “I want to help.”

Back in camp, Mirage was following Jazz around the camp learning a bit about what to do in terms of Inamorata duties. They had started early in the solar cycle, and he was beyond tired. “Jazz, I have been up since the fourth groon and all we’ve done so far is walk the outskirts of the camp and chase of small Insecticons from the energon fields.”

“Oh, come on Mirage, you have to admit onlining you and Hound with the younglings jumping you was funny.” Jazz held his mid-section with a laugh. Mirage crossed his arms and glared at his friend. “You’re face was the best part.”

“Hound protected me from all of them pouncing on me. I’m not as resilient as everyone else.” Mirage looked around with a small hum, “speaking of him, where is he? I haven’t seen him since fueling.”

It wasn’t long before a loud neighing sound pulled their attention to Po-Ku running into view. He reared back and bucked when a couple of the warriors tried to settle him down. Hound, Outback, and CatSCAN all ran over to the panicked chronohorse to help calm him. “Easy there Po-Ku, where’d you come from? CatSCAN, I thought you locked him in isolation?”

Hound grabbed the lead and sniffed it, “Beachcomber.”

Jazz and Mirage joined them; the Polyhexian looked at the three mechs with confusion while Outback was offering an energon crystal to the foal. “What’s going on?”

Both of the Paimen looked at each other then their Inamorata, “Hound thinks Beachcomber let Po-Ku out of his pen. And he clearly came from the forest, which means-”

“My son is somewhere out there hurt or worse!” Jazz covered his mouth with his fears spiking at the thoughts of Beachcomber being hurt. “We need to find Beachcomber now!”

At the mountain, Beachcomber was riding the back of the technohawk and was being taken to a ledge that looked across the way to a camp that had large poles surrounding the site. The poles were connected with heavy electricity and prevented anything from getting or out. Walking the grounds were several guards with blasters ready to shoot on sight. The youngling expanded his field and was attacked with scared and defensive fields.

“There’s so many, how am I supposed to help them all? And there’s a lot of outlanders with their weird weapons.” Beachcomber looked at the technohawk with a frown. “We should have had the clan come help us. This is too hard for me.”

_We will help you._ The technohawk cawed before nestling down beside the youngling. Beachcomber hugged his knees as if this were going to help him come up with a plan. The youngling hummed with a sad sigh.

“Carrier would know what to do, he’s really smart and would be able to stop the outlanders. Sire would be able to scare the outlanders away with just his size, I’m not big like Sire.” He rocked on his stabilizers before he felt something reach out for his field. Beachcomber shot to his peds and his processor became a blur, “I can feel you. A Predacon?”

_Beast talker?_ The technohawk rose to her talons and watched Beachcomber just walk for the edge of the cliff. She flapped her wings and quickly saved him from whatever was pulling him towards the camp. The technohawk lowered down to avoid the hunters seeing them. Beachcomber walked straight for the camp despite the avian trying to keep him away from them. _Beast talker._

Beachcomber stopped just short of the campsite’s entrance. The guards stopped their patrol and saw the youngling. “Hey, look it’s one of those wild bots! Didn’t the boss want one?”

“Oh yeah! Come ‘ere kid, we got a safe place just for you.” The other guard moved through opening gate with his blaster aimed at the youngling.

The youngling stood with a blank expression. His visors rippled with coding as he looked up at the sky, then back at the hunters. “_You have angered the forest and her creatures. You have forgotten that you have come from the very surface of Cybertron._”

“What’s it saying?” Guard one looked at the other guard, who just shrugged with a shake of his helm.

_“We are the voice of the forest and we won’t let you hurt our home anymore._” Beachcomber’s voice was distorted and sounded animalistic. The technohawk landed behind Beachcomber with her wings opening wide. She threw her helm back and released a loud cry. She lifted the youngling onto her back and took off to the sky, immediately getting shot at by the guards. Beachcomber linked up to the technohawk and they fought back, drawing the attention of more guards, and riling up the mechanimals that were trapped inside the cramped cages.

In the camp, the warriors were getting ready for a battle before Cheetor patted Mirage’s thigh. The mech lowered down with a smile, “what is it Cheetor?”

“’Namorata Mirage, what’s that?” The youngling feline pointed to the sky where the soft sounds of fighting and lights were flashing in the sky.

Mirage shot back up to his peds, looking at the sight that the feline was. “Jazz, over there!” The Polyhexian looked in the same direction and smacked Ultra Magnus’s arm repeatedly.

“Beachcomber’s on top of that thing! Why is he on top of it?” Jazz continued to smack his sparkmate despite the giant mech looking at the site the others were.

“Jazz, I see it. We know where our son is at, which means we’ll be able to get to him faster.” Ultra Magnus put a servo on his mate’s shoulder. “Trailbreaker, you and the fliers go flank the outlanders from the west. Hound, take the others to the east. Jazz, Mirage with me.”

First Aid and his siblings crowded their creators with determination in their optics and visors. “What about us Sire, we want to help!”

“Yeah, we want to help like Beachcomber is!” Bumblebee bounced on his peds.

“Not this time peep squeak.” Pyra Magna rubbed the yellow mech’s helm. “Why don’t you stay here and make sure the other younglings are safe?”

The groups left to go retrieve the youngling and chase out the outlanders. While they were running for Beachcomber, the youngling and technohawk continued to attack the outlanders. Their dives knocked cages over, releasing various creatures.

“Oh no, the beasts are out!” Some of the forces of the outlanders focused their firepower on the group of cyberwolves that were stalking towards them. “Fire at will!”

Both Beachcomber and the technohawk screamed in anger before she released a fiery breath. There was a loud ground shaking roar before a large t-rex stomped out of the cave with energon dripping from its mouth and claws. Beachcomber unlinked from the technohawk and merged his field with the Dinobot, feeling the beast’s pure anger and rage. “_Come on, I can help you, but only if you let me in!_”

The Dinobot threw its helm back with a loud roar. A blast from the side hit the creature’s side, further angering it. Beachcomber screamed when the t-rex fell to its knees, but it didn’t last long before it stood up with a new found strength. “_Get me to him, I can help!”_

_Little beast talker, you will get hurt down there._ The technohawk took off for the sky, breaking through the clouds to avoid being further shot at. _We must find a new way._

“No, he needs me to save our friends!” The youngling’s visors were filled with more coding. “The forest is in trouble and I have to help! Now take me back to him.”

_I hope you know what you are doing little beast talker._ The technohawk shrieked before diving down back into the battle. She flew back up when Beachcomber jumped onto the Dinobot’s back.

_Get off me puny creature!_ The Dinobot roared and swung his body around in attempts to knock Beachcomber off. The youngling held on tighter and whimpered in fear as the outlanders were trying to fight off both the mechanimals that were their size as well as the massive Dinobot.

“_No, I can help._” Beachcomber found the hidden port in the back of the t-rex’s neck plating, and linked up with it. His visors turned a bright yellow as the two fought for control. “_Let. Me. Help!”_

_Never! Your kind have brought nothing but destruction!_ The Dinobot roared into the sky. Beachcomber shook his helm and pushed his field further against the creature. The youngling was determined to get the Dinobot to cooperate with him.

“_I’m not like the other! Me and my family respect the forest and the wildlife. We want to protect our from the outlanders just like you._” Beachcomber gasped when the two fields merged together.

Ultra Magnus and the others circled the campsite, but they couldn’t get themselves to move at the sight they saw before them. Before them was Beachcomber and the Dinobot were trying to defend themselves from the outlanders who were now fighting with more firepower. Mirage clenched his fists with determination in protecting his family.

“How are we supposed to get to Beachcomber with _that_?” Pyra gestured at the mechanimal army attacking everything in their path.

“Like this.” Mirage snapped his digits and he slowly disappeared out of sight.

Hound didn’t like Mirage needlessly run into literal battle without a plan, but he had to admire the courage. Mirage may have not been seen by anyone, but anyone who that really looked closely, they would have seen the small distortions. Ultra Magnus revved his engines, signaling for the aerials to go in for the first attack. The Iaconian rushed for the flailing Dinobot, fizzling back into view. “Raj, what are you thinking?”

“Beachcomber, get down from there now!” Mirage jumped back to avoid the swinging tail. “What have you idiots done? Do you guys care about anything but your stupid selves? He’s just a youngling, just like you all were, and you want to treat them like items!?” He turned to face the outlanders with his fists clenched tightly.

Mirage backed into the t-rex as a group of hunters moved in on him. Hound and Trailbreaker came in from opposite directions, knocking some of them out of the way. The Dinobot roared before swinging his tail in a crazed manner, hitting wilds mech and outlander alike. Jazz and Ultra Magnus both charged more attackers.

“You have come after my family for the last time!” Jazz jumped in the air, stabbing one of the hunters in the face. He stood above the collapsed form with two daggers in his servos. _“Comber, come on get down from there now!_”

Beachcomber and the Dinobot looked in the direction of the youngling’s Carrier’s voice. “_The forest is angry; we must protect our home._”

“_Comber, buddy come on down. We’ll save our home, but you need to get down._” Hound called out after knocking the weapon out of an outlander.

“_Destroy._”

“Blackshadow, give me a lift!” Mirage called out to the Seeker that was taking out the towers. The black jet flipped backwards and picked up the mech, dropping him over the t-rex. Mirage landed behind Beachcomber, “come on Beachcomber we need to get you away from here.”

He unlinked the youngling from the Dinobot and leapt down just before explosions attacked the creature. Mirage was trying to avoid being caught in the crossfire of laser fire and spears flying around. The mech spun around and yelped when he was faced with the barrel of blaster.

“Hand over the kid and we’ll all disappear?” The mech cocked a grin before pulling the trigger very slowly.

Mirage looked down at Beachcomber in his arms and then back at the hunter. He cocked a grin, “is that so? You’ll have to find us first.” Mirage fizzled out of sight with Beachcomber disappearing too.

“Ah! They can turn invisible now!?” He started wildly shooting in directions, hoping to find Mirage. The mech stopped his wild shooting when he froze and coughed up energon. He looked down to see a dagger fizzle into view along with Mirage. “You-”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry it took this long to post a chapter. We had a surprise adoption of a kitten about a week ago. Not to mention my work (I work in a grocery store) makes me essential during these hard times, so it's been hard to just sit down and type. Also I deeply apologize for this terrible fight scene XD -v-'


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey GUYS! I'm alive, and I am so so so SO sorry for being MIA! There has been a lot of stuff going on in my personal life! I hope everyone is staying safe during this pandemic as well as in general. Just a quick insight to what my life has been like: Covid-19 existing, my brother going off to boot camp, rescued 2 kittens (And obviously kept them), work being a hassle, my state being on fire, and mental health. I also deeply apologize for this chapter being EXTREMELY short, I'm trying to get back into the groove of writing, so I hope you'll bear with me!

Ch. 21

“Is he online yet?” Jazz was sitting beside Beachcomber’s prone form as Triage was checking the youngling. It had been three solar cycles since they rescued Beachcomber from his suicide mission, and he had yet to online. The Polyhexian had refused to leave the youngling’s side, going as far as laying with him in the same cot to give him extra warmth.

Triage scanned the mech with a disappointed sigh. He didn’t understand why Beachcomber didn’t online. The mech tapped his chin in hope it would somehow give him the answer he, along with the rest of the clan, desperately needed. It wasn’t like there wasn’t anything physically or internally wrong with Beachcomber! He just wasn’t onlining. Jazz took hold of the small blue servo and pressed a gentle kiss to the back of it. The red mech rested a comforting servo on the Inamorata’s shoulder. “Jazz, we have never had him test his gifts, especially to the extent he forced himself. Perhaps he is just mentally tired.”

“Why is this happening to me, Triage? First with First Aid and now Beachcomber! My family is being torn apart right in front of me.” Jazz hated breaking down in front of others, he usually concealed his emotions until he hid behind closed doors with his mate to comfort him.

The Läakäri pulled the Polyhexian into a comforting hug. “We’ll figure this out. Now get some rest while you can.” Jazz nodded solemnly before lowering to give Beachcomber a kiss on the helm. When the visored mech left the hut, Triage knelt beside the youngling and grabbed his servo with a frown. “Why must everyone in your family have this desire to save others if it means you die?”

Jazz went straight for a spot he hadn’t been to in a very long time, some place special to him. He knelt in front of a young cyber tree with a servo going to one of the root of cables that stuck out of the ground. “Hello Heatrock, it’s Carrier again. I-I’m sorry I haven’t come to see you in a while, not since… since Hound and I left for Iacon. I haven’t stopped thinking of you my brave little warrior. Your little brother First Aid had… has the same condition as you, but thanks to an outlander medic, we were able to figure out what was wrong. I only wish we were able to save you. And your big brother Beachcomber foolishly saved a whole bunch of mechanimals from the outlanders.”

“I wasn’t expecting you to be here.” Jazz turned around to see his spark mate walking towards him. Ultra Magnus knelt beside the smaller mech, resting a large servo on top of the black servos. The visored mech was aware that his mate came out to visit their son and his first mate often, and he admired his determination to remind their loved ones that they weren’t forgotten.

“I felt that I should let _him_ know that I still love him. I know I shouldn’t, but I blame myself for not being able to think of taking Heatrock to the outlands to save him.” Jazz hugged himself with a heavy ex-vent, ready to leave the hut until a small groan caught their attention. He rushed over to the smaller mech’s side when he saw Beachcomber moving. “Comber, Comber come on sweetspark online those pretty blues.”

“C-Carrier?” Beachcomber’s optics flickered online to seeing his Carrier’s visors. Jazz quickly pulled his creation into his arms as he purred softly. The blue and white mechling returned the hug with whimpers. “I’m so sorry Carrier. I-I just wanted to save my-”

“Shh, shh it’s okay sweet spark. I’m so relieved that you’re alright.” Jazz kissed Beachcomber’s face plate repeatedly before pulling away with his hold on the small arms firmly. “Don’t you _ever_ do something so insane as going to an outsider camp and connecting to a Dinobot! Do you understand me?”

Beachcomber nodded rapidly, “are they okay?”

Jazz rolled his optics behind his visors, but there was a smile on his face. He rubbed his face against the mechling’s cheek plate. “They are absolutely fine. All that matters is that you are online and okay. And you onlined at the perfect time!”

“What?” Beachcomber looked at his Carrier with a curious expression on his face. The curtains on the hut was pulled open, and the youngling cheered as he ran for his Sire. “Sire, look I’m online!”

“I can see that,” Ultra Magnus knelt as he lowered his creation to the ground. “Now, I can trust you not to do something like this again?”

Beachcomber shook his helm with his servos going behind his back. “No Sire,” he turned around to face his Carrier, “I’m sorry Carrier for scaring you.”

Jazz gave the other visored mech a soft smile. “Thank you. Now what do you say to Triage?”

The youngling rushed over to the older medic and hugged him quickly. “Thank you for taking care of me Triage.” He wasted no time before running out of the hut. All three mechs could hear the excited squeals of younglings the moment Beachcomber exited the hut. Beachcomber finally was able to get away from all of his friends and siblings, and was swept up in a pair of arms. His gaze quickly went up to see who picked him up. “Mirage!” The two white and blue mechs hugged tightly.

“Oh, thank Primus you’re okay Beachcomber. I was afraid I didn’t get to you in time.” Mirage gave the youngling one more squeeze before finally setting him down. “And you onlined just in time too. Pyra Magna and Trailbreaker are having their ceremony tomorrow.”

The mechling finally looked around the camp and saw that there were ceremonial colors being painted on the herds as well as the walls of the camp. Beachcomber watched strings of crystals being hung along the entire top of the front wall by Blackshadow and the other fliers. “They’re finally going to bond!? Does this mean you and Hound are gonna bond next?”

Mirage and Hound looked at each other with shy smiles. The green mech cupped the back of his brother’s helm with a chuckle. “We have talked about it, but tomorrow is all about our sister and our sub-altern. Why don’t you go find them and let them know that you’re online?”

“Oh!” The visored mech perked up before jumping down and hurried off with a frantic wave behind him.

The Iaconian and wild mech both watched the youngling disappear into the mountain. Mirage looked up at Hound as their servos interlocked, “are we going to tell him about the mechanimals?”

“No, a big majority of them did make it out and will regrow. Whatever Jazz told him to make him happy is all he’ll have to hear.” Hound spoke softly as he walked with Mirage through the camp. Nyx and Hellhound were tailing the two bipedals with Nyx’s tail wagging rapidly with excitement. The four went for the gates, not really going out for anything but decided it was a nice day for a walk. “I saw Nyx catch a glitchmouse earlier.”

“Oh? How many times did it take before she caught it?” Mirage laughed into his servo just as the puppy barreled between them, chasing a small Insecticon while Hellhound followed after to keep an optic on her. The white and blue mech looked up at the sky with a happy smile. “So, where are Pyra and Trailbreaker going to go after the bonding? Your sister was talking about a waterfall or something.”

“Waterfall? Hmm, oh, she must be talking about the falls _way_ up North! It’s her favorite place to go.” Hound smiled like a proud brother that his younger sister was finally going to be bonded after so long. “Which means, my siblings will fight over who gets her room once all of her things are gone.”

Mirage snickered before wrapping his arm around the green mech, laying his helm on the arm. He hummed thoughtfully, “you know this reminds me of the times my family would go on walks; I would be running in front of my Carrier and Sire, Carrier would have her arms around my Sire’s like this, and Sire would be telling me stories about make believe or something funny that happened while at work.”

“You must’ve gotten that from him, because you tell amazing stories to the younglings.” Hound spoke honestly. For a mech never being near many younglings, Hound had to hand it to Mirage for having lots of patience with them. “Did you have any suggestions for where you would want to go after our bonding?”

The mech hummed in thought of where he would want to go, but ultimately shook his helm with uncertainty. “I have no idea where I would want to go. Where would _you _take me?”

“Where would I take you? Hmm, I don’t know, maybe the west part of the Sonic Canyons. It’s away from the outlands, but during the lunar cycle you can see the lights.” Hound lifted Mirage’s servo to his lips and kissed the back of it. The ex-noble’s engines let out a soft purr.

“Hound, you know we can’t continue this. We’re going to be late again for fueling.” Mirage tried resist by gently nudging Hound away from him. The green mech gave his lover the best cyber puppy optics that he could muster along with a small pout. When Mirage continued to push him away, Hound started nuzzling his neck and gave out whimpers. The future Inamorata groaned after standing there with a fully upgraded mech begging for affection. “I suppose we have a couple groons before we have to be back for the meal.”

The next Father snickered in success when he won the battle. He gave his lover a deep kiss on the lips before grabbing his servo and ran with Mirage into the forest. He sat Mirage on a stump as he started peppering him with kisses. “Oh Raj, I love you so much.”

“I love you too.” Mirage slid his servos up the boxy chest as he went in for another kiss. The blue and white mech was pulled out of his haze when he heard howling, then he remembered Nyx. He pulled away quickly, looking around with worry in his optics. “Nyx?”

Hound looked around before going back to kissing the mech. “She’s fine, they always howl after catching something. Hellhound won’t let anything happen to her.”

It took a few sweet whispers and more kisses along with caresses to the sensitive parts before Mirage starting to fall down the sweet embrace of lust. The two pressed their lips together before pulling away slowing, and pressed their forehelms together. “I-I suppose if she’s with him then a few more kliks won’t hurt.”

Hound gave a big grin as he nodded slowly, “yeah?”

Mirage wrapped his limbs against his future bonded with an enthusiastic nod, “yeah.” The green pulled them to the ground as they dove into another kiss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you again for being patient with me and supporting me! :)


	22. Chapter 22

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jazz and Ultra Magnus moment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is obviously really short. I am ironing out some kinks and trying to get some things put in place for the holidays. I hope y'all understand.

Ch. 22

Jazz was helping Pyra Magna and Trailbreaker carry his daughter’s things to her future mate’s flat. As he went to grab whatever they missed, he heard light-hearted laughs coming from Hound’s room. The visored mech quietly peeked around the doorway to see Hound on top of Mirage, tickling the noble mech on the berth. The white and blue mech was squirming and laughing in his servo, trying to keep quiet.

“Hound, stop tickling me. Someone’s going to hear,” Mirage spoke softly while trying to muffle his laughs. Hound playfully growled before blowing on his neck cables. The future Inamorata yelped when Hound nibbled his neck cables with purrs. “Stop it Hound, you’re going to get us caught.”

“Oh, but Raj, you smell so good.” Hound purred as he playfully licked his cheek plate. Jazz silently laughed into his servo when he heard Mirage give a sound of disgust at being licked.

“Okay, your grounded from giving me affection for the rest of the sol.” Mirage pushed Hound off as he wiped his face clean. “Don’t you have some poor innocent petro-rabbit to kill or tree to climb?”

“Jazz?” Hearing Ultra Magnus calling for him, Jazz silent left the younger couple to themselves. He saw his mate covered in various swatches of paint and a scowl on himself. The Polyhexian bit his lip as he quickly covered his mouth. “The younglings thought it was appropriate to start a war with the paint.”

The visored mech started laughing harder as he drew closer to his mate, wiping the pale yellow across the Father’s mid-section. “Yellow really isn’t your color dear. Were you caught in the crossfire again?”

“We must find a better place to hide them.” Ultra Magnus complained as the two left the camp to get cleaned up in the river. For Jazz, the water came to the top of his thighs while Ultra Magnus had to sit in the river in order to get a decent wash. “Have you cried your spark out while you helped mover Pyra Magna’s things out?”

Jazz scoffed as he playfully splashed the giant mech, “I cried all lunar cycle long. I won’t be doing that until the ceremony, and what about you Mr. No emotions? Are you going to show emotions for your oldest daughter?”

“No promises,” Ultra Magnus rubbed some paint off his shoulders while Jazz got his legs. “I am pleased by their pairing. No one would have been a better match for either of them.” He saw the amused chuckle on his mate. The Father knew that his Inamorata was just waiting for him to admit he was right once again. “You were right.”

Jazz perked up with a loving kiss on Ultra Magnus’s servo, “I know, but I still wanted to hear you say it. Come here big guy, there seems to be something on your face.” Magnus leaned in close before he was tackled back into the river with Jazz kissing his lips. They pulled apart with a deep rev coming from Ultra Magnus got a pleased purr from the smaller mech. “All clean.”

“I appreciate your help cleaning my frame. Would you like a thank you in return?” His question was answered with a turned-on growl. “Then we will have to take this out of the river.” Ultra Magnus lifted Jazz into his arms as he took the couple of steps backwards before dropping to his knees.

The Polyhexian caressed his mate’s face with a loving smile, “remember our first time? And how _romantic_ it was?”

“I remember a very different first time. You spent the first half groon crying because you were concerned we would never be able to interface.” Ultra Magnus called out his second mate; earning a smack on his chest.

“You know slagging well why I was concerned. Now shut up and frag me into the ground.” Jazz grinded against the larger mech. The Polyhexian was already feeling hot, and knew it would take a few overloads before his mate would feel the same. Then again if he used his special trick that always got an instant reaction from the giant. He opened his chest plate and started playing with his spark as his visors deactivated. His mate was the only one who got to see his optics, not even their creations saw his optics.

Jazz felt his mate gently touch his face, being careful not to linger too long near the black holes that were once his optics. “You are beautiful, and I know I may not express my emotions like others, but I love you with every fiber of my being. I am so honored to have you in my life.”

“You are such a smooth talker.” Jazz leaned forward and kissed Ultra Magnus. “I love you too big guy. Maybe Primus knows what he’s doing? Now enough talking and make me see stars.” The Polyhexian purred as his mate started playing with the smaller spark, getting a deep purr from him. “Oh, baby yes.”

Back in the camp, First Aid was playing with the other younglings before he came to a stop when he felt his helm feel weird.

_First Aid, can you hear me?_ The youngling recognized the voice as Hot Spot.

_Yeah! How can I hear you?_ First Aid was looking around, expecting to find the blue mech.

_You do not have to shout. We are connected, remember? We have been feeling your emotions increasing these last few sols. Are you okay? _Hot Spot asked with genuine concern for the youngling’s safety.

The white and red mechling physically nodded as he continued to stand there and talk with his new friends. He giggled when some of the astrofoxes returned from hunting to greet him. _I’m okay. My sestra and our Subaltern are spark bonding soon. I wish you and the others could come and see it. I miss seeing you guys; can you come here and see me? I know Carrier and Sire would let you if I asked hard enough. Oh, please Hot Spot? I wanna see you all again._

_We are really busy with work, we can’t just leave Iacon to come visit._ The Protectobot leader answered honestly. He felt the youngling’s disappointment feed through the bond, and sighed at how delicate this bond was now that there was a youngling in it. _We can try to meet you at the edge of the forest, but we can’t make any promises. Okay?_

_Really? Oh, Hot Spot that’ll be awesome! Then I can teach you guys some of our words._ First Aid was clapping his servos with a lot of excitement. The youngling could feel the others try to calm him in the bond. He chuckled nervously. _Sorry._

“Aid, it’s time to get ready for evening meal!” Bumblebee called out to his brother from the mountain.

The youngling looked over his shoulder, “okay!” He spoke into the bond as if his friends couldn’t hear him already. _I gotta go, but I can talk to you again?_

_We are only a thought away. Stay safe._ Hot Spot was soon no longer in First Aid’s helm. The youngling was sad for only a moment before he saw his creators return from wherever they had gone. He rushed over to them with a happy purr when his Carrier picked him up.


End file.
